One of a Kind
by gacktsgal
Summary: Naruto wakes up in a parallel world, where him and Sasuke are best friends again and Sasuke glomps people, not a thought on Itachi. Will Naruto love this Sasuke, or miss the old one? Yaoi,AU,Naruske
1. What If

**Hey, this is my very first Naruto fan fiction. Or any fan fiction for that matter. XX; The whole gang are 15-16, and it's set in present day. They're in America since, regretfully, I don't know crap about schools in Japan. Heh..Yup. So…here's chapter 1? ; I will use some Japanese words, such as kun, san, baka, dobe, etc.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of the characters. Like quite a few say, if I did own Naruto, Naruto and Sasuke's relationship would be muuuuch different. –wink-**

**---**

**Chapter 1: What If**

"Watch it, dobe."

An emotionless, deep voice accompanied with an insult. I didn't need to look up to see who it was. No matter how hard I try, I always happen to be behind schedule so I have to run everywhere to get to my classes on time. It doesn't help when I'm tripped for the fun of it, and like right now, I often find myself flat on my butt with some jerk hovering over me. This is a first for running into him, though. Literally. He's usually in class early.

A growl, and I immediately recognize it and tense up before I'm deafened. "NARUTO, APOLOGIZE TO SASUKE-KUN AND WATCH WHERE YOU'RE RUNNING, IDIOT!"

I look up to see what I already know is there. Sasuke, his face expressionless as usual except for a faint twitching in his left eye, probably caused by the two girls hanging off his arm. The one who yelled, Sakura, already had her hand bunched into a fist and I admit I was scared at the look on her face. The other girl, Ino, just stands there with a cool superior look on her face.

I stand up, picking up my backpack and slinging it back over my shoulder. "Sorry, Sasuke-teme," I say, not looking sorry one bit. Grinning now, I add, "You're usually in class by now. The bell's about to ring."

Sasuke is probably the most popular guy in school. Only for his good looks though, not his personality. He's usually followed by a pack of girls, clinging and drooling over his dark eyes and black hair that spikes up slightly in the back. He shows no interest in them, or anybody else for that matter, but it doesn't seem to get through their heads.

I wouldn't really call us friends, but it's not like we don't get along. We call each other names, we fight, but we're not doing it seriously half the time. I don't think he thinks the same way I do, but I'd be glad to be friends if he ever got that stick out of his ass. Enough time has passed to get over it.

Anyway, what do I get for my full-hearted apology and attempt at a conversation? "Hn," he grunts, and before Sakura can punch me he walks past, shouldering me out of the way. Because her other hand was clutched around his wrist, she was tugged along.

"Next time, stay out of Sasuke-kun's way, Naruto. Like you even deserve to look upon him," she hisses. Ino smirks over her shoulder as they follow their God. A lot of people here hate me, I'm not sure why. Sure, I guess I can be hyperactive. Only a little, though. And I pull pranks every chance I get, but I try to be friendly to everyone but all I get are glares and punches.

I do have a few friends, such as Neji, Lee, Shikamaru, and Kiba. Neji and Shikamaru don't talk much. Neji's more the silent, thinking, brooding type. Shikamaru is simply a lazy genius who enjoys sleeping. Lee can be loud, and scary. He's constantly crying because he's happy, and he's always hugging the Gym teacher, Gai-sensei. They even look alike. Kiba is talkative, and loves pranks as well. But he also acts before he thinks, often saying things or getting into fights. He's accompanied by a small white dog, Akamaru. I still don't know how he convinced old woman Tsunade to let it in the school.

--- (Sasuke POV) ---

"Watch it, dobe."

I was sent by Kakashi-sensei to deliver a note to the office, since he was too busy wrapped up in his perverted Icha Icha Paradise book to do it himself. Sakura, a girl with short pink hair and a big forehead and Ino, another girl with long blonde hair always pulled back in a high ponytail, leaving a strand on the left side of her face decided to come with me. By clinging themselves to my arm.

I don't get why all these girls are still going after me. They have been ever since they figured out cooties weren't real. It's not like I show any interest in them. I don't show any interest in anyone. Why? It's simple; I'm _not_ interested. I prefer to keep to myself, I need no friends. I want no friends.

Anyway, I was simply turning a corner in the hall (I could feel my left eye starting to twitch) when a flying orange thing collided into me. I was just shoved back a few inches, while the orange thing or Naruto, fell on his butt. I watched as he grimaced at his feet, muttering "Itai itai" while I just glared at his spiky blonde head.

I toned Sakura out, who was yelling something at Naruto while her free hand curling into a tight fist. Naruto and I have known each other since we were small; I'm not sure he even remembers. He was an orphan even before I met him; no one's sure where his parents are. Everyone assumes they're dead.

That was back when I smiled and laughed. We were best friends. I remember, and I think I always will, the day we promised we'd be best friends forever. We were standing on a pier. Naruto was smiling a true smile, even though he's been suffering a great loss, but Naruto has always looked on the bright side of the things, he was optimistic. He still is. Our right hands reached for the other's, index and middle fingers sticking out. Our fingers hooked around each other's; our promise.

But then, one day, I came home from my karate lesson. I was seven then. I walk through the front door, slipping the white duffel bag from my shoulder and onto the floor. "Mom? Dad? Itachi?" I called out. No answer.

Unnerved, I checked out the kitchen and dining room. Nothing. But when I walked into the living room, I was greeting by a sight that I would never forget for the rest of my life.

Dad was slumped halfway off the couch, mom slumped over his legs. Both of their mouths were open, eyes wide in shock, their throats slashed, blood everywhere. The television was still on, which somehow made the sight even more horrifying.

In the next room, I heard the door that I had left open close. _Is the killer still here?_ I spun around, and I did come face-to-face with the killer. He had the same eyes as mine; dark, the same as his hair. His hair was longer than mine, pulled back into a loose ponytail that suited him, his face emotionless as if nothing was wrong, yet he held a long sword that came from my father's collection, dripping with my parents' blood. My older brother, Itachi.

"W-why?" I stuttered out. I could feel every part of me shaking, I don't know out of anger, hate, or horror. Probably all three.

"To…test my limits," he answered. What the hell kind of answer was that? Itachi has always been an over-achiever, often leaving me in his shadow to try to live up to. Without thinking, I lunged at him and immediately received a devastating blow to the gut. I could taste blood in my mouth, and before I blacked out, I was left with a feeling of intense revenge that would stay with me until the day that I myself, and no one else, would kill him.

After that day, I became the cold, brooding, top of the class person I am today. I didn't need, or want, anyone. I didn't need, or want anything except revenge. And that's all that mattered. Not Naruto. Just revenge.

I became aware of my surroundings again after Naruto commented on how I was usually in class by now. "Hn," I replied, feeling something tug at my heart. Something unwanted, unneeded. I shoved past him, affectively stopping Sakura from punching him as she was clinging to my wrist with her other hand.

--- (Naruto POV) ---

Shikamaru, Kiba, Neji, Lee, and I all sit in a booth at Pizza Hut. Akamaru sat on Kiba's head, asleep. I was telling them about my day, every so often stopping to take a chunk off of my cheese pizza.

"I mean, we used to be friends. It was eight years ago, I wish he'd get over it! It was horrible, but he didn't have to throw his life away for revenge. I don't get why I'm saying this though, he's lost," I say, about Sasuke. My friends knew about our childhood, and well…everyone knew about Itachi.

I look up to see Shikamaru snoozing on the table, his face on his pizza plate, smearing sauce all over his cheek. Lee is crying, which wasn't an odd sight. "You're absolutely right, Naruto-kun! He is wasting his precious youth!" At the word youth, he jumps up from the booth with a _clang!_ and pumps his fist into the air. Everyone gives us weird looks, including Gaara and his brother and sister, Temari and Kankurou.

Kiba grabs Lee's forest-green shirt with a hissed, "Sit down before they kick us out!" Shikamaru has woken up and was rubbing his eyes, smearing the sauce more on his face. Neji just stares intently out the window, most likely hoping people would somehow think he was with them against his will.

Ignoring Lee, I flash them a bright smile. "I just wish he'd let me in again, to help him. That we were still best friends."

Shikamaru leans back against the booth, arms folded behind his head. "Sasuke's just…" he trails off, his eyes closing. Lee, Neji, Kiba and I stare at him, knowing what's going to happen. "So troublesome," he finishes his sentence finally and nods off again.

"Well, Orochimaru-sensei loaded us with a bunch of homework, so I'm going to head home," I say. Everyone says bye, while Shikamaru manages a weak grunt. I laugh and stand up, walking towards the door. Temari manages to trip me when I pass their booth, and I shoot the trio a dirty glare. This was a mistake, since Gaara looks like he'd love to rip my head off now. I hurry out of Pizza Hut.

"I'm home!" I call out. My house was of a moderate size, and it was comfortable to live in. Even though he's not related to me by blood, I've lived with Iruka as long as I can remember. I don't even remember my parents.

I pause as I hear shuffling and a muffled "Itai!" from his room. Iruka sticks his head out the door, but I can tell he's only wearing boxers. "Welcome home, Naruto! How was school?" This was a dumb thing to ask, since he's one of my teachers. I can see a faint blush working its way on his face.

I rub my temple with my fingers, trying to push the dirty thoughts out of my mind. "I'll leave you and Kakashi-sensei alone." Before I disappear into my room, I glimpse a masked man with silver oddly-cut hair on Iruka's bed.

Not bothering to undress, I throw myself onto my bed and sigh. It seems like everyone hates me, even my used-to-be-best-friend Sasuke. I don't really blame them, the way I act sometimes. But it's who I am, and it's who I'll probably ever be. I wish they could just see that and accept it, and accept me as well.

---

**Well that's the end of the first chapter. I'd love it if I got a few reviews, what author wouldn't love that? XD I'm hoping none of the characters are ooc, but this is my first fan fic and I'm sure I'll mess up a lot on this. Thanks for reading!**


	2. Bumped Heads?

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, or any of the characters. Yet…shifty eyes**

**Thanks for the reviews, I really appreciate them! So I know I won't be writing this fic for no reason, I'll only write the next chapter if I get at least one review the previous chapter. If no one's reading it, why write it? So be sure to review if you want me to continue. And there are going to be two point of views starting this chapter. Naruto wakes up to find everyone acting completely opposite their nature. It's not really a different world, or reality just..yeah. So…**

**Naruto's POV: The opposites reality/world/place**

**Sasuke's POV: The original reality/world/place**

**Hope you got that, little hard to explain. XD On to Chapter 2!**

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**Chapter 2: Bumped Heads?**

--- (Naruto POV) ---

My good dreams are interrupted by an annoying, ongoing beeping noise. Realizing that it was my alarm clock, and I had to get to school in an hour, I reach out a hand and hit the "Off" button. I get up and get ready for school, putting some bread in the toaster, fixing and gelling my hair, brushing my teeth, putting on the usual orange clothes, eating the popped-up toast, and rushing out the door.

Iruka gets to school much earlier than I do, so he can clean up the class room a bit and get his classes for that day ready. When I get to the main entrance to my high school, I'm expecting to see Lee, Neji, Kiba, and Shikamaru all sitting around waiting up for me as usual, but they're not there.

I pause and look around for a few seconds, students moving around me and into the building, to see if they were going to jump me or something. No sign of them. So I join the students trailing inside and instead of my four usual friends, I'm greeted by Hinata-san, probably the shiest girl in school, walking up to me and punching me playfully on the shoulder and grinning from ear to ear.

"Hey, Naru-chan!" she all but yells. "What took you so long to get here this morning? You kept us all waiting, come on!" With that, and another punch to the shoulder, she walks off to homeroom (Iruka) that she shares with me. _What exactly is going on? Hinata and I have barely said ten words to each other all year and she never acts like this_. She usually has trouble getting out the first word out of her mouth, while she nervously taps her index fingers together and blushes.

She leads me to the back row and to the corner of the classroom, where Shino, Gaara, and Chouji are all sitting in a group and waiting for us to join them. Shino is a quiet guy that wears sunglasses, even inside, and has a little bug fetish. Chouji is nice; we talked a few times but not much. He loves to eat. And Gaara is what surprises me. He's what you would call a bully. He tries to pick a fight with anyone that gets too near, so we all know to stay away from the raging pale boy with blood-red hair, eyeliner, and a kanji meaning 'love' on the left side of his forehead.

Hinata, showing no sign of hesitation whatsoever, strolls right over and takes a seat on her desk across from Gaara. I, however, do not have a death wish; so I just stay standing there staring at them like they're on drugs. Which they probably are.

Hinata looks me and then away, then does a double-take when she realizes that I'm not going to move an inch. "What's wrong with you, Naru-chan? Are you feeling okay?" The others give me weird looks as well, and I shuffle over to them and take a seat.

The others get into a conversation about last night's TV show. I don't even try to listen; I just look around the room and try to figure out what the hell is going on. I spot Sakura and Ino sitting in the front of the glass, pouring over a…_ What the hell are they doing reading over Orochimaru's biology textbook like it's the seventh Harry Potter?_ Sakura turns her head slightly, and I notice she's wearing glasses, and that students coming in were avoiding them like the plague. _Whatever…I'm not sure I _want_ to know._

"Kiba, Shikamaru, Lee, Neji!" I call out, finally spotting my friends enter the classroom. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Gaara, Shino, Chouji, and Hinata look at me strangely. "Why weren't you at the entrance to the school?"

My friends stop and stare at me strangely, along with the rest of the class. "What are you talking about?" Kiba asks, talking over Gaara's, "Why are you being so loud?" and leaning away as if I was about lunge at him and kill him or something.

I don't know what to say to this, so instead I just let my jaw drop. After a few seconds, I gain my thoughts back. "What's with everyone? Is this some kind of stupid prank! If so, it's really stupid! Like," I spin around and point at Gaara, "you! Since when are you so social? Yeah right," I snap. I'm not exactly having the best morning.

Shino chooses this moment to stand up, clasp his hands on my shoulders and shakes me roughly. "Naru-chan, calm the hell down. Did you get up this morning and bump your head? And like Gaara said, quit being so loud. It's not you."

Once again, I'm speechless. _Since when am I so loud? _I know the reason a lot of people hate me is _because_ I'm so loud. It's just me. Loud, annoying, and optimistic equals me. Naruto Uzumaki. I give up and choose to play along, if this was a game. Something still didn't seem right.

"Yeah, sorry guys. I'm just…" I trail off, leaving an odd silence in my group of "friends." Kiba, Lee, Neji, and Shikamaru are sitting across the class room, shooting odd glances at me every few seconds. Iruka hasn't arrived yet.

I snap to attention when Gaara pokes me. I jump and flinch, but Gaara just laughs. "Funny, Naru-chan." I zone out again, the rest of Gaara's sentence drowned out. _What's with this Naru-chan all of a sudden? It's really irritating. _"Naru-chan?" I pay attention to Gaara, who's been asking me if I've seen Sasuke.

"Why would I know where Sasuke-teme is? I don't keep track of that bastard," I huff, crossing my arms and leaning back into my chair. Chouji, oddly not eating something, gives me an odd look. I'm getting a lot of those this morning.

"Bastard? Did you two have a fight or something? You guys are so close, I've never heard of you getting into a fight with each other once."

"Friends? With _him_? Yeah right," I once again huff. Just then, the door slams open and the topic of our conversation runs in, grinning. I haven't seen him smile since we were seven. Before I can blink, Sasuke jumps at me and hugs me tightly, cutting off my air supply.

_What._

_The._

_Hell?_

The rest of the class is starting to take out their math books, pencils, and calculators, as if this happens everyday. Hinata, Gaara, and Chouji just shrug. "Guess they're not fighting," Chouji mutters.

"Ohayo!" Sasuke yells to the class. Right in my ear. He's now sitting on my lap, his legs wrapped around my waist, and I fight to keep a blush down.

Iruka strolls into class, his eyes closed while he rubs the bridge of his nose. Without even looking at us, he says, "Alright class, settle down. Sasuke sit down. And not on Naruto-kun's lap. Turn to page 225." With that he picks up a marker and begins to write on the board. This is going to be an unusual day.

--- (Sasuke POV) ---

I stroll into my homeroom, early as usual. Even Iruka-sensei isn't here yet. I have always been an early person. I wake up at five in the morning, even on days there is no school. And I'm always in homeroom before anyone else, even the teacher.

I sit in the back row, scanning through today's lesson, when I hear the door open. "Ohayo, Iruka-sensei," I say in a bored, monotone voice that I always talk in. He makes us say that, even though I hate talking, period.

"Oi, Sasuke-chan. You're here early." My eye twitches at being called Sasuke-chan, and I look up and I'm surprised to Naruto. For once, he's not wearing orange. He's wearing a light-brown hoodie with slightly baggy jeans.

"If you value your life, dobe, don't ever call me that again," I snarl, returning to my scanning. Instead of turning red and yelling insults at me, which always results in a verbal fight between us, he just looks at me and then sits in the desk to my right.

"Bad morning?" Naruto asks, resting his chin on his hands and looking at me from out of the corner of his blue eyes. I glance at the scars on his face; he's had them ever since I can remember. Three thin lines, like whiskers, on each cheek. They're kind of cute, but I'd sooner die than say something like that out loud.

Before I can realize it, Naruto's face is right in front of mine, barely an inch apart. "Oi, Sasuke-chan. Are you okay, do you need to go to the nurse?"

I narrow my eyes dangerously, giving him my signature glare of death. "I suggest you get your face away from mine and stay out of my business, usuratonkachi." For a moment, there's a flash of…worry?...in Naruto's eyes then he sits back down in his own desk.

The room is filled with dead silence until the other students, along with Iruka-sensei, arrive. "Ohayo, Iruka-sensei!" the class choruses, me not included. I just stare straight ahead, but Iruka doesn't seem to notice, thank God.

_Wonder what's with the blonde dobe today? He's not loud, obnoxious, and hyper as usual. He's…normal._

I barely stop myself from groaning when Kiba, Shikamaru, Lee, and Neji walk over and sit at the desks around Naruto's. "Hey, Naruto, what are you doing over here next to this asshole?" Kiba laughs, raising his hand up for a high-five.

Naruto just stares at Kiba, then looks around the room and notices some other people. To my surprise, he gets up and walks over to Hinata, Shino, and Chouji, who was eating chips.

"Hey guys, why is Gaara sitting by himself? And something's wrong with Sasuke," he says, settling himself into a desk next to Hinata. A blush spreads immediately up her cheeks and she plays with her two index fingers.

"H-h-hello N-Naruto-kun," she whispers, while Shino nods to Naruto, looking like he could care less why he was over there talking to them. Chouji, loving the chance to get to know him, grins and says good morning.

Naruto looks at them strangely. "Um..guys? What's wrong? Gaara's sitting by himself looking deadly, Sasuke looks moody, Hinata's blushing, Shino's quiet, and Chouji's eating chips. What's up with everyone?"

Shino just glances at Naruto; at least I think he does. It's hard to tell behind his sunglasses. The rest of the class is listening in as well, while Kiba and Lee look confused beyond belief. Even Shikamaru and Neji are showing emotion, with their jaws hanging open slightly in disbelief.

"N-Naruto-kun," Hinata whispers, the blush never fading away. "Gaara-kun al-always sits b-by himse-himself."

Now even I'm confused beyond belief, and it seems so is Iruka-sensei, who's Naruto's guardian. He's staring at Naruto, as well. Kiba decides to jump up, walk across the class room, grabs Naruto's arm and drags him back over to the others. They pass Gaara, who's been acting like he hasn't been listening but he has, and he sneers at Naruto, who looks unfazed at this.

"What's wrong with you, man? Did you fall out of your bed and hit your head on the side of the bed again? Only harder?" Kiba whispers harshly. Naruto just cocks his eyebrow and shakes his head. He opens his mouth to say something, when the bell rings and Iruka-sensei starts class.

I let my thoughts wander as he lectures, but half-way through class I'm surprised, again, when Naruto raises his hand and gives out a correct answer to Iruka-sensei's question. _He's acting very different. Not loud, not jumping around, answers a question _correct_ in class. It's like he's not even Naruto, it just looks like him._

When the bell rings, signaling us to leave for the next class, Naruto stands up and turns to me again and smiles. Not his huge, toothy smile where his eyes squint up, but a real one. "I'll meet you in the locker room, okay, Sasuke-chan? You can tell me what's wrong, I'll help."

I just stare at him, shocked. Not knowing what to say, I glare at him. "Hn," I grunt, walking away towards the door. Sakura and Ino, as usual, choose this time to cling to my arm and squeal.

Before I can get outside the classroom, I notice Kiba and them asking Naruto questions. "Why are you talking to Sasuke for, man?" I feel Sakura yanking on my arm, pouting. But once again, that unwelcome feeling that's both unwanted and unneeded tugs at my heart when I hear Naruto's answer.

"He's my best friend."

---

**Well, here's the end to chapter 2. Hope you enjoyed, and I'll repeat myself. If I get at least one review for this chapter, I'll continue to write the next one. Why bother writing a story nobody reads? Constructive criticism is welcome, but flames aren't. **

**Reviewer Responses:**

**Guardian of the Hell Gate****- Sorry for not including Glomping Sasuke in chapter 1. You see him in this chapter, and I promise there will be more. ;)**

**Vwcasey- Ahh yes, sorry. I'm a Kakashi x Iruka fan, as well as Sasuke x Naruto. There will be some yaoi in this story, I'm sorry I didn't put it in the summary. I changed that though, so people won't be offended. Once again, I'm sorry if I did offend you, and thank you for your review. )**


	3. Likes and Dislikes

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, or any of the characters.**

**Thanks for the reviews, they make an author happy. I won't be updating as much during the weekdays, since I have homework and my time is more limited because of school and my mom's weirdness. P If anyone has any suggestions for my story, go ahead and tell. Also, should I bring Itachi into this story, as a little subplot, or just do that with another story?**

**Reviewer Responses**

**Guardian of the Hell Gate: Haha…I don't know. ; It just did lol. One of those..unexplainable things? XD**

**Kimika: Yes, they're in the parallel universe. You know it's back to the world with broody Sasuke when it's his POV, and the world with glomping Sasuke when it's Naruto's POV.**

**---**

**Chapter 3: Likes and Dislikes**

--- (Naruto POV) ---

When the bell rings at the end of Iruka's math class, I jump up to try to get out of the room quickly. "We'll see you at lunch, Naruto!" I turn to find Hinata, Gaara, Chouji, and Shino grinning and waving. Hesitating only for a few seconds, and wondering where Sasuke-on-Crack went, I wave back and rush out the door.

Before I can take three steps, however, a body hurls into me from the side and clings to my waist. Once again, the other students simply go around us, some rolling their eyes, like Sasuke acts like this everyday.

Sasuke lets go after about ten seconds and we walk down the hall heading for the locker room. "Oi, Sasuke-teme, what's with you this morning? What'd you have for breakfast?" I ask.

He merely raises an eyebrow and grins at me, painfully reminding me of our wonderful childhood friendship. I miss those days.

"Just some toast, why? And why are you calling me a teme? It hurts." He proves his point by pouting and crossing his arms over his chest, managing to look very cute. _Argh, this isn't Sasuke. Sasuke broods, hurls insults at me, and definitely doesn't pout and smile and hug people._

I shake my head, trying to drive the thought of Sasuke looking cute out of my brain. "Ah, right, sorry. I just didn't get much sleep last night. Anyway, you didn't mistake the butter for sugar or anything, did you?"

He gives me a funny look, now looking like the Sasuke I know. Then he laughs, ruining it. "Cute, Naru-chan. How can anyone mistake butter for sugar?" I scratch my head while keeping a blush down and coughing uncomfortably.

"It's just you're usually all quiet and drawn into yourself. All you thought about was killing…" I paused here, unsure of whether I should mention Itachi or not, "…your brother."

Sasuke frowns slightly, then to my disbelief just shrugs. "That happened a long time ago, Naru-chan. You know that. I just let it go." I scoff as he turns and flashes a bright smile at me then steps inside the locker room, me following him.

"Let it go? Sasuke, you're the one that's always brooding about it everyday, not talking to anyone, thinking about revenge."

"What are you talking about? I hardly even think about Itachi anymore. What he did was horrible, and the pain has lessened but it's still there. I just don't sulk over it."

With the finality in his tone, he does the combination on his locker and begins to undress. I follow suit, deep in thought. _It's hard to believe and get my mind to grasp, but I don't think this is the same world I was in yesterday. Everyone's acting weird, and no one is sending glares at me. It's like I'm a world full of opposites._

I'm only forced to believe this more when Gai-sensei shuffles over to the class, now ready and dressed in their gym clothes. He puffs out some air and looks sulkily at us. "Alright guys, let's just run four laps out on the track today."

I grin to myself; usually he makes us run about twenty. It's still a little unnerving; Gai-sensei is usually extremely annoying, outgoing, and hugging his students, especially Lee. It's funny, since this is what Sasuke seems to be like now.

The rest of the day goes by quickly and strangely. None of the girls are bothering Sasuke, but I can still see the looks of adoration they throw at him. It seems like they're too scared to even wave or smile at him.

I've now gotten used to Sasuke's new personality, but I'm still freaked out when he yells greetings to people, hugs me and everyone else, and smiles. Which he does a lot. But it's a major improvement from the "talk-to-me-and-your-life-is-over" Sasuke.

I've also gotten used to my new group of friends. They give me strange looks when I greet them with my usual loud and hyperness, but I don't think anything of it. I do admit I miss my old group of friends, though. Every time I see them walking down the hall or in class, I can't help but wonder when this weird world I'm will return me to where I'm supposed to be. I mean, I can't stay here forever. Right?

--- (Sasuke POV) ---

_Best friends…_

---

The sun is setting, giving the sky an orange-yellow color. It really is beautiful. I had my legs pulled up against my body, my chin resting on my knees. I glance over at my companion, my best friend. He has a thoughtful look on his face, and I grin.

"Whatcha thinking about, Naru-chan?" I ask him quietly. He blinks a few times, as if he had just woken up, and looks over at me and grins.

"It's always going to be like this, right?" he asks.

"What?"

"Us. Best friends, watching sunsets, always helping each other out when something bad happens."

I look back at the sunset. Now that I think about it, I'm Naruto's only friend. The other kids hate him simply because he's him. Loud, everywhere, never tiring. He's grown so used to acting like that, trying to get others to notice him in any way possible. I love him for it.

"Of course things will always be like this," I answer. And I fully believe it. I notice Naruto standing up and I look at him, curious.

"Then let's promise," he says, waiting for me to stand up as well. I do so, smiling. He's smiling, too. He holds out his right hand, his index and middle fingers sticking out, and I do the same.

Our fingers hook around the other's, and we stay like that for a few seconds.

"Promise."

---

At the time, in our childish foolishness, we both firmly believed that promise would be kept. At Naruto's words, I realize that I do miss him. But I can't just let go of Itachi, either.

I wait outside the classroom for Naruto, trying hard not to snap at Sakura and Ino who were tugging at my arm. "Who are you waiting for anyway, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asks, making her eyes big and pleading. Like her forehead.

When I don't answer, she clings to my waist and buries her face into my chest. _That's it._ "Can you two just go away!" I snap, surprised at my own lack of control. At the look on their faces, so were they. I guess they think I might apologize, because they stare at me with an expectant look on their faces. When I don't, they walk away sulkily.

"Hey, Sasuke-chan." At Naruto's voice, I turn around to face him. I try to smile, but I'm pretty sure it came out as a smirk. I tried.

"Why did you say we were best friends?" I ask him as we walk down the hall.

Temari trips Naruto, who only stumbles and glares at her. "What was that for?" I hear him mumble. Almost like something like that has never happened before. "Because we're best friends. We always have been. Are you sure you don't need to go to the nurse?" he asks.

I only shake my head. "I'm fine, dobe." I wait for a bad comeback to be thrown at me, but when it doesn't come, I only see a small frown on Naruto's face.

"I see you're having a bad morning, Sasuke-chan, but you don't have to call me names because of that. Like I said, I can help. What's going on?" Naruto asks. It's my turn to frown, and I do so. This can't be Naruto.

The day progresses, and there's not one outburst, insult, or any sort of hyper activity from Naruto whatsoever. Other students are starting to notice, and I hear some people say they hope he stays this way. Some are worried about him. I'm with the latter.

Naruto seems to have given up on talking to Hinata, Shino, Chouji, and Gaara for the day, while Kiba, Lee, Neji, and Shikamaru seem to have given up on talking to Naruto.

"Hey Sasuke-chan, let's go out to the pier," Naruto says as we're walking outside the school building. I only nod and grunt a "Hn" which receives another worried glance from Naruto. Maybe I'll find out why he's acting so different. There's one thing I do know, though. I don't like this Naruto.

---

**Yay, the end of this chapter. I'll ask again, just in case some didn't read the top. XD Should I include Itachi in this story? I also need some suggestions for things to happen in this story. If not, this will be a really short story. P So anyway, please leave a review, it only takes a minute. **

**1 Review Chapter 4**


	4. Sunsets and Feelings

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of the characters.**

**I thank you all for the reviews, they're really great! So.. If you've read my profile you know that I also like drawing. So, once this story reaches 20 reviews I'll draw something. After the chapter I'll give you some options and let you guys vote. Of course if you don't care don't vote. P So here's chapter 4.**

**By the way, here's a little yaoi in this chapter. **

**---**

**Chapter 4: Sunsets and Feelings**

--- (Naruto POV) ---

It's now been three days since I came to this world, if a different world is where I am. A world so alike, but so different, to my real one.

I run into the school building right when the bell rings, signaling the start of first period. Shit. I woke up ten minutes before school started, threw on some random clothes, brushed my teeth, and ran out the door not bothering with my even more unruly hair or breakfast.

When I unintentionally open the door too hard, making it slam into the wall, I stop running and ruffle the back of my head, embarrassed. Trying to catch my breath, I more or less shout out, "O-ohayo!"

The first thing I see is Iruka's death glare, and he opens his mouth to probably give me detention. I cut him off. "Sorry, Iruka-sensei. Won't happen again." Not giving him a chance to reply, I shuffle over to my friends and sit down, noticing Sasuke grinning at me. It still throws me off when I see him smile.

The rest of the hour is spent with all of us passing notes to each other, oblivious to Iruka. One good thing about this world; the other Iruka would've caught us quicker than we could blink.

When the bell rings, I'm stopped by Iruka's hand blocking my path. "If you're late one more time, Naruto, you _will_ get detention." I frown slightly.

"I live with you. Why can't you wake me up before you leave, or call me or something? It's not like I'm late a lot." Of course, back in my real world, I _am_ late half the time. But like I noticed, this world is a tiny bit different.

"It's your responsibility, Naruto. I just house you." He waves his hand, sending me away.

Sasuke is waiting for me when I get out in the hall, as usual. "You're shirt's been bugging me all hour," he grins. Before I can give him anything more than a confused look, he proceeds to reach forward and yank my shirt off. I stand there in shock, feeling my face heat up.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING, BAKA!" Everyone around us slows down and snickers at us, some telling us to get a room. Before I can shout anything else, he has yanked my shirt back on.

"You know it hurts me when you call me names," he pouts. "Anyway, your shirt was inside-out." I flush, this time at my stupidity. I guess Sasuke is feeling extra-chatty today, because before I can thank him he grabs my arm.

"Hey, let's meet on the pier this evening, at six o'clock. It's been a few months since we've done that." He smiles at me, and I force a smile back. Being with this Sasuke felt wrong, somehow. This isn't Sasuke at all.

I nod. "Okay," I agree. "Thanks for noticing my shirt; I was in a huge rush this morning." Sasuke only smiles at me, and finally releases my arm, although rather slowly.

"Anytime, Naru-chan. Let's get to gym class."

---

The rest of the day seems to go by in a blur. Before I know it, it's five-thirty and I'm stuffing my face with beef ramen as usual. I never seem to grow tired of this stuff.

When I notice it's already six, I get up and put my bowl and chopsticks in the sink, filling the sink with hot water, and rush outside.

By the time I reach the pier, I notice Sasuke is already there, sitting on the edge, looking lost in thought. He doesn't seem to hear me until I'm a few feet behind him, then he smiles and motions for me to sit down next to him.

Neither of us talk. We just sit there, enjoying the cool breeze, the sun, the sky, and each other's company. I'm almost positive for him this felt natural, but to me I just felt nervous. Suddenly Sasuke breaks the silence.

"Remember the promise we made? We were standing here, only we were six then." He looks over at me, and I only nod.

"Of course I remember," I whisper, not sure if I was talking to him or to myself. I can't help but wonder; does the real Sasuke remember our promise? If he does, I wonder if he feels any regret about breaking our close friendship…probably not.

"Naruto…" This is odd, he's actually using my real name instead of some nickname.

"Mm?" I mumble, turning my head to look at him, only to find he's already looking at me. His black eyes were, for once, unreadable; much like the real Sasuke's. He moves a little closer to me, tenderly grabbing my upper arm.

Before my mind can register what was happening, I feel another pair of soft, warm lips on my own. My brain goes into shock when Sasuke deepens the kiss, but yet keeping it simple. I find myself closing my eyes, but it wasn't until I went to bed that night that I wondered why I imagined myself kissing the other Sasuke. The real Sasuke.

--- (Sasuke POV) ---

When we get to the pier, Naruto automatically sits down on the edge of it. I continue to stand, my arms crossed, behind him. "Are you going to tell me what's going on?" Naruto asks, not even looking at me.

I ignore him for a while, and then I walk up and stand next to his sitting form. One of his legs was dangling off, his toes trailing the surface of the water. His other leg was against his chest, his arms propped against his knee.

"I'm acting the same way I always do," I mutter, barely stopping myself from throwing a name at him at the end of the sentence. "It's you that's acting different. Why are you pretending that we're friends?"

My remark is met with silence, and when I glance at him I see his eyes lowered to the water, sadness seeping from them in waves. Me, being the bastard that Naruto knew me for, continue.

"We were friends a long time ago. But ever since that jerk murdered my family, our friendship's been over. I don't want friends, Naruto, you've always known that. I thought you have, anyway."

Before I can continue Naruto cuts me off and stands up, glowering at me. "What the hell's with you? You've never let your brother haunt you before; I always thought you knew better than that!" Instead of yelling, of course, he's just using a normal voice, but in a harsh tone.

I glower right back at him, and I see him visibly flinch a little. "We haven't been friends for years, Naruto. Why are you letting this get to you now?"

"What are talking about? We've always been friends. Best friends." Now he looks at me with a sad look. "And when something has been bothering you, you told me about it, and let me help you. I love you, I always have."

I stare at him, my mouth open in shock. This isn't Naruto, so I decide to tell him just that, saying more than I should have, letting more emotion show than I should have. "You're not Naruto. You're not the Naruto that's been my rival instead of friend these past years. You're not the Naruto that, deep inside, I do miss but won't bring myself to tell him. You're just someone that looks like Naruto, but has a completely different personality. You're. Not. Naruto." With that, and a death glare and the inner ramblings of a _WHAT THE HELL DID I JUST SAY?_ running through my head, I turn my back on the Naruto impersonator and go home.

---

**Alright, this chapter…sucked. XX Sorry guys, both for the bad chapter and the long update. I had other things on my mind. And those came in the form as three kick-butt FFVII fics and FFVII: Advent Children. Heh. ; Alright, once I get 20 reviews for this chapter I'll draw something for you guys. It can be something from this story, like Naruto and Sasuke on the pier. The sweet scenario, not Sasuke spazzing out Naru-chan. XD Or..just tell me what you'd like me to draw. (Naruto related, duh) I'll do this every 20 reviews. (20, 40, 60, etc.)**

**1 Review Chapter 5**


	5. The Day After

**Hey, sorry for the long delay. Something you guys should know…when I find a really good story, I get hooked on it. Then I get in the mood for MORE yaoi and go off searching for MORE stories. So I get..a _little_ sidetracked sometimes. XD Funny how, a few months ago, I was all,"Yaoi? Neh..whatever." Now I have withdrawals if I don't read it. Heh. Anyway, if any of you were wondering, I won't be doing any lemons. xx It's like..impossible. I'll pass out in the middle of writing it or something. Anyway, I'll start working on the picture. It'll be up by Chapter 6 or 7. Keep the reviews coming, I really appreciate them!**

**Disclaimer: I own Naruto, and all the characters. Then I woke up and my dream came crashing down.**

**---**

**Chapter 5: The Day After**

--- (Naruto POV) ---

I find myself not being able to sleep after the events at the pier. I try, but no matter how comfortable I get, my mind refuses to shut off. Instead, it chooses to replay the kiss with Sasuke over, and over, and over again. I'm not even sure what to think of it.

---

"_Mm?" I mumble, turning my head to look at him, only to find he's already looking at me. His black eyes were, for once, unreadable; much like the real Sasuke's. He moves a little closer to me, tenderly grabbing my upper arm._

_Before my mind can register what was happening, I feel another pair of soft, warm lips on my own. My brain goes into shock when Sasuke deepens the kiss, but yet keeping it simple. I find myself closing my eyes. _

_The hold on my arm tightens slightly, as if nervous or scared. Most likely of being pushed away. But I just sit there, my eyes closed, neither pushing Sasuke away or returning his kiss._

_I feel something warm and moist slide against my lower lip, and at the contact I jump up slightly. Sasuke wraps his remaining arm around my waist, pulling our bodies closer together until there was nothing between us except our shirts. I can somehow feel desperation coming from him; desperation for my touch, my returning and accepting kiss._

_Hesitating for only a few seconds longer –although it felt like much longer- I part my lips, letting his tongue slide past them and around my mouth, mapping it out, entwining with my own tongue. _

_Feeling awkward with my hands just lying on the wooden pier, I move one hand and tangle it through Sasuke's dark, smooth hair. When his grip on my arm leaves, tangling his hand with my own hair and letting my arm move, I wrap it around his waist._

_A low moan escapes Sasuke's throat, swallowed up by my mouth, and he tugs our bodies closer still, crushing our torsos together and making it a little more challenging to breathe. After a few more moments of this, we break apart, gasping for air._

_We simply stare at each other, a red tint crawling up both our cheeks, but it seems impossible to break our eye contact. The daze lifting from my bran, I disentangle my hand and let my arms drop to my sides and stand up, Sasuke doing the same._

"_I..um…," I cough, clearing my throat and looking at my shoes. "I have to go home. It's getting late," I whisper. For a moment, I thought he didn't hear me, but when I look up he's nodding in agreement, but looking like he doesn't really know what I said. We lift our hands in an awkward good-bye wave, and I set off for home._

_---_

It's an odd feeling; both wanting to be with someone but yet not wanting to. When we parted from our kiss, my brain had somehow fully convinced me that when I'd see Sasuke, I'd see him scowling and growling in anger, followed by a punch.

But instead I was met with this other Sasuke; one that was embarrassed, yet looking happy at the recent events. I couldn't understand why my heart fell when I looked upon this Sasuke. The Sasuke that I don't know at all. Do I really prefer a grumpy, jackass Sasuke to this kind, caring one?

I toss and turn some more, first staring at the ceiling, then the wall, then the opposite wall, or maybe even the pillow itself. When my mind finally allows my body to fall asleep, my last thoughts are of Sasuke and I. Me sitting in a desk in class, surrounded by Shikamaru, Kiba, Neji, and Lee on one side; Sasuke on the other side of me. We're throwing insults at each other, our hearts not in the words, both of us feeling strangely comforted in the other's presence.

_I do._

---

I walk into Iruka's math class Friday morning to find Sasuke, Hinata, Gaara, Chouji, and Shino already in their seats, rolling their eyes good-naturedly at my later arrival. I glance at Sasuke, and my eyes are immediately met by a pair of dark, onyx-colored ones. I smile slightly, sitting down across from him and behind Hinata, and he returns it, looking embarrassed.

Suddenly Hinata's head pops up right in front of my face, and she's giving both me and Sasuke odd looks. "What's with you two? You're both acting strange, Sasuke didn't even hug anyone. Not even you, Naru-chan."

"Eeermm," is all I can get out, squirming uneasily and feeling guilty, even if for no reason, in my seat before Sasuke saves me.

"Sorry, Hinata-chan," he says, making his voice weak and a little raspy. "I just don't feel well." He forces a half-smile, his eyes half-closed, giving him a tired, dozy, maybe even drunk look. I barely restrain a snort at his acting. I just settle for looking concerned for him.

Hinata leans forward, getting a better look at Sasuke, before nodding wisely. "Yeah, you _are_ looking paler, Sasuke."

"Yeah, maybe you should rest in the nurse's office for a bit," I add, wondering how Hinata can tell if Sasuke looks paler. He's already pale enough.

"I think I'll be fine, guys. Thanks," he coughs weakly, and when Hinata turns her attention to the arrival of Iruka-sensei, I roll my eyes at him. He grins back at me. Just like that, the nervous, embarrassed air that was between us evaporated.

Iruka-sensei strides over to his desk and faces the class, forcing a smile. I just notice he's carrying a stack of paper.

"Ohayo class, as you all probably know, it's almost the time for our yearly weekend camping trip." He's forced to stop his explanation, as quite a few students in class erupt in hisses of "Yessss!" high-fiving, and a few that immediately reoccupy themselves with whatever they were doing before, obviously not interested.

My friends were among the former, and Sasuke turns around to grin happily at me. I'm not sure how to react; my real school has never done yearly camping trips.

"SHUT UP!" Iruka-sensei yells, and we all jump in our seats, one or two falling on the floor from jumping to the side. I blink in surprise, giving him my full attention once more. "Just like the year before, and the one before that," he trails off, a dark shadow covering his face. He clears his throat. "All you have to do is take a copy of this paper, sign it, have a guardian sign it, and bring it back to me by Monday. Meet in front of the school next Friday at seven pm, and be sure to bring essentials. We'll be back Sunday evening. Any questions?"

While Iruka-sensei answers the questions that are asked, my friends and I gather around in the back of the room to discuss the trip. "We're going, right? We go every year," Hinata whispers, every once in a while darting a glance at Iruka-sensei to make sure he hasn't seen us talking.

I nod, after hesitating a split second. Why not? It sounds fun. "I just love the camping trips to the forest. It's so peaceful," Chouji murmurs, looking blissful.

We look to the front as we notice everyone is done asking questions, and sadly, we move on to math. After the bell rings, the whole class grabs a copy of the permission form and files out, along with myself.

"Naru-chan!" I turn around and slow down, letting Sasuke catch up to me as we continue for gym. He glances away for a few seconds, then almost inaudibly asks, "We're going to be partners this year again, right? You know, for the activities and the…the tent." I fight down the urge to blush, then chastise myself for my stupid imagination at the idea of sleeping in the same tent. At night. Damn it, stop!

"Of course," I grin at him in a reassuring way, to let him know things between us haven't changed. _Or have they?_ He grins back, and I can't help feeling an odd sense of excitement for next Friday.

--- (Sasuke POV) ---

"Sasuke!" Naruto calls to me. I can tell from the tone of his voice that he barely managed to restrain from adding the "chan." I ignore him though, and continue on my way to my house. I hear footsteps fast approaching, and when I feel a hand tugging at my sleeve I whip around, snarling in anger.

"Screw off," I hiss, knocking his hand away with my arm. I can see the deep hurt flashing in his eyes, but I whip back around to continue home, ignoring his gaze I feel at the back of my head.

Now back at home, in my room, I pace around and around my room. Every once in a while in anger I punch my pillow or the wall. Kakashi isn't home, so I'm not worried about anyone disturbing me. Except Naruto, but I know he won't be bothering me anymore tonight.

"What the hell does he mean he loves me? What's he playing at?" I hiss to myself, not watching where I was walking and stumble over the pillow that lays on the floor after bouncing harmlessly off the wall. "DAMN IT!" I yell, more at Naruto than the annoying pillow.

The more I think about it, the more I believe that that Naruto truly isn't the Naruto that I've known since practically forever. It sounds hard to believe; a made-up fantasy, but it's the only explanation. His aversion to the color orange, trying to chat up Hinata, Chouji, Shino, and Gaara, acting like he doesn't know who the hell Kiba, Shikamaru, Neji, and Lee are. The fact he thinks we're best friends, that nothing has happened. And his personality has done a complete turn-around.

Sick of thinking about this, I abruptly grab the pillow I just previously tripped over, toss it on my bed, and strip down to my black boxers. I lay on my bed, pulling the heavy blanket up to my chin. I guess I was more tired than I realized, because before I know it I fall into a heavy sleep.

---

I wake up at five in the morning as usual, mostly because of the internal alarm clock in my head than the annoying once I pound off with my first every morning. I grab a black t-shirt with off-white shorts, and then stumble to the bathroom to brush my teeth and gel up my hair into its usual spikes. I then flip on the television to MTV until it's time to go to school.

I walk to school, which isn't very far from my house. It's better than riding the bus with a bunch of annoying peers. As usual, I enter the school building, thankfully seeing no sign of the blond dobe, and sit in the back row in Iruka-sensei's room until the bell rang.

Students pour in, some by themselves who later meet with their friends, some in small groups of three or four. I roll my eyes as they talk about one single topic before Iruka-sensei came in. Some were happy and were saying how he was horrible, while others, girls of course, say they cried and that Chris shouldn't have been voted off American Idol. Why do they give a shit about who wins some rigged singing show?

I finally manage to tune the AI talk out of my head, when I feel another presence walking over and sitting in the desk next to mine. I stifle a groan, knowing automatically who it was. Sadly, my thoughts were proved right when my shoulder is lightly tapped and I look over to see Naruto. His eyes were slightly baggy and blood-shot, like he didn't get enough sleep last night. Like I care.

"Sasuke, can we ta-" I just shoot him a glare and whip my head to the wall on the other side of me, interrupting him with a, "Hn."

Before he can try again, however, Iruka-sensei walks in to start the class. I manage to ignore him while Iruka-sensei left us to our work, even when he attempts to pass a note to me. I reply by ripping it into shreds without even opening it. A little immature, but whatever. It gets my point across.

When the bell rings I'm first out the door, even when I was in the back, by shoving people aside with my shoulders and ripping Sakura and Ino's clingy hands off my arm. I'm already dressed in my gym clothes before anyone else comes into the locker room. Of course I'm rewarded (not) by a small outburst from Gai-sensei.

"Sasuke, I'm so happy you're so full of youthful energy and spirit, driving you to get ready for my class so fast! Maybe we can run a few hundred laps around the building after school today!"

"No thank you, Gai-sensei," I mutter, and he goes on about my youthfulness a few more minutes before he finally leaves.

It was when I was on my third lap around the school track that I run into Naruto, or he runs into me actually, again. I was more than surprised, because I was half a lap ahead of everyone else, except for Lee who was finished and was doing stretches and jogging exercises with Gai-sensei. Since when was Naruto athletic?

"Sasuke, I need to talk to you. After school, okay?" he pants. He may have suddenly gotten more athletic and endurance, but I can tell he's still worn out. The only thing stopping him from talking to me now was he had no breath.

Can't wait.

---

I'm halfway home when I hear familiar footsteps running to catch up with me. Once again, I left as soon as possible so I could avoid Naruto, but obviously that didn't work. He slows to match my walk when he gets beside me.

I ignore him, and he doesn't talk. We continue like that for a while, and I'm starting to think that he was going to change his mind and go away, but then:

"I was up thinking all last night," he states. I shrug.

"It's nice to try new things," I say, in my usual monotone voice.

He chooses to ignore that. "Do you think it's possible…" he pauses. "For there to be something like a…parallel world, or universe, or something?" He looks down at his shoes, biting his lower lip. I would've called him a stupid little kid, but with the odd things concerning him the past few days I've been thinking about things this odd as well.

"Yeah," I reply. "Why?"

"Because, this isn't the life I've been living the past fifteen years. My best friends were Hinata, Gaara, Shino, Chouji, and you. You…" he pauses once more, swallowing. "You weren't a grumpy jackass that called me dobe and usuratonkachi. And you smiled, and laughed, and we hung out everyday. And other people were different too, like Sakura. She's the shiest girl in school, not Hinata. And she's really nerdy, too. But now she's all clingy, to you, and annoying and bitchy. I know I wasn't dreaming or something stupid like that. That was real. But so is this. There's no other explanation."

I nod. "I agree with you, Naruto," I sigh. "The real Naruto, not you," I glare at him, "wears lots of orange. And stuffs his face with ramen any chance he gets-"

"I'm allergic to ramen."

I go on as if he didn't say anything. "He's annoying, loud-mouthed, and smiles too big and too often. And we're not friends; we…" It's my turn to pause. "We made a promise to stay best friends. But after something happened to me and my family, I shoved him away. Good thing, too. I hate him."

"Itachi?"

I stop and whip around to give him my death glare. "Don't you ever say that name again." After a few moments of me glaring at him, and him with his mouth gaping open in surprise, we continue to walk.

"We made that promise, too. Only you never broke that promise. And last night, before you left, you said you miss the real Naruto. The one that belongs here, not me. So I don't believe you when you say you hate him."

I slowly let out a breath I didn't know I was holding until now. "You're right, I guess," I mumble, wanting to admit it out loud and at the same time not wanting Naruto to hear it. But I know he heard it when he turns to give me a small smile.

"So…we're friends, Sasuke?"

"No," I snap.

"Oh. How about…" he turns to me again and smiles, chuckling softly to himself. "Friendly acquaintances?"

"Hn..Whatever, dobe." He doesn't look hurt as he usually does when I insult him. We both know it's how this works in this reality, and we both know he won't try to change that. I wonder if the real Naruto will ever return?

Naruto waves goodbye, then sets off in another direction to his own house. I just nod in acknowledgement and continue walking home. That's how we, as friendly acquaintances, part.

---

**Ah, finally got this chapter written. I won't be updating this weekend (May 13-14) because I won't be home. Glad I made this chapter a bit longer than the previous one. And I had to include the American Idol thing, I just got finished watching that when I typed that part and I was sad Chris left. I want Katherine to win, though. I don't own American Idol or MTV. Also, I just became aware that I messed the days and weeks up between the two realities. I intended for them to both be the same day, so sorry. I wanted Naruto in Sasuke's POV to be there for a week as well, but instead it's been a day. Oops. P**

**Review for this chapter and I'll go on to Chapter 6.**

**Responses:**

**Guardian of the Hell Gate: **Thanks for telling me about the checkbox to let people that aren't members review. I wasn't even aware there was a checkbox!

**Duhreah:** Sorry for confusing you, you're probably not the only one. Hopefully you know what's going on now. )

**Like I mentioned before the chapter, I'll be drawing the picture (the kiss) and I'll hopefully have it scanned and put up by Chapter 6 or 7. I'm also thinking of starting a FF7 fanfic. . Of course I won't abandon this one, just something I'm thinking of doing. If I do that, should it be Cloud x Sephiroth, Cloud x Zack, or Cloud x Reno? Thanks!**


	6. New Things

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of the characters. I also don't own "Dance, Dance" by Fall Out Boy, and Romeo and Juliet.**

**Hey, because I love you guys I tried to get this up on Friday before I had to leave. But I had Naruto's POV and ¼ of Sasuke's POV typed up, then I had to leave. So sorry for another long wait between updates. A few more reviews and it'll reach 40, so I'll be starting on Sasuke x Naruto at the pier fic along with another. XD I will do them, not sure when. Here's Chapter 6.**

**---**

**Chapter 6: New Things**

**(Note before story: In Sasuke's POV, it's the same Friday when Naruto leaves for the camping trip. Yay, finally on the same day. XD)**

--- (Naruto POV) ---

Iruka-sensei's math class, along with myself, put the permission slips for the camping trip on his desk. When the bell rings to start class, he sighs heavily and passes a clip-board to Sakura, who's sitting in the first desk next to the door.

"This is a sheet where you'll put your name, along with your partner for the trip. Same sex partners, of course," he says, rolling his eyes. Hinata looks a little worried; she was the only girl in our group of friends. I lean over to whisper to her.

"Oi, Hinata. What'd you do for a partner the previous years?"

She just looks at me and grins lightly. "Forgetful, aren't you, Naru-chan? I just partner up with whoever doesn't already have a partner, which is usually," she stops, cringes, and looks at Sakura, "_her_."

I nod; I can understand why that would suck. In my real reality, Sakura is a major Sasuke-clingy bitch. To tell the truth, I used to have a crush on her. But that quickly ended when I was on the receiving end of her many punches, for running into _poor_ Sasuke, or hurting _poor_ Sasuke's feelings. It's obvious he didn't care whether I called him a teme or not, insults just bounced off him. But Sakura isn't exactly the brightest crayon in the box.

Here, though, Sakura is, to put it bluntly, a nerd. She's quieter than the real Hinata, and even stutters more than her, which I didn't think possible. I only talked to her once, and that was when I helped her pick up her box of pencils. All I said was, "Here ya go," and she stutters about a million times and blushes, trying to get out a thank-you. I got out of there pretty fast.

The paper comes to me first, so I look at Sasuke and grin at him before writing down our names. In the end, Hinata was stuck with Sakura.

---

The week goes by fast, and before I realize it I'm standing beside Sasuke loading onto the bus that'll take us to the forest. After everyone's on and ready, the driver takes off, and I relax against the window. Sasuke has the aisle seat.

The driver is this really grumpy old guy. An hour passed, and I think I'm going to die from being so bored. So we all decide to start yelling at him to at least turn some damn music on. After five minutes of yelling, and him grimacing in annoyance, he twists around to face us (and barely manages not to hit a stop sign) and yells, "OK YOU BRATS, JUST SHUT THE HELL UP!" The teachers on the bus, Kakashi, Iruka, and Jiraiya, just chuckle to themselves and act like they don't notice the students ganging up on the bus driver.

He reaches up and turns the radio on, changing stations when we start to yell at him that country sucks. Finally finding the station we want, he drops his hand back to the wheel, muttering to himself.

_She says she's no good_

_With words but I'm worse_

_Barely stuttered out,_

"_A joke of a romantic," stuck to my tongue_

When the song reaches the chorus, grinning madly, the students on the bus get up and start jumping while singing along. Even though I'm in the back, and the teachers in the front, I can swear I see Kakashi jumping up and down and singing along under his weird mask.

_Dance, Dance_

_We're falling apart to half time_

_Dance, Dance_

_And these are the lives you'd love to lead,_

_Dance_

_This is the way they'd love if they knew _

_How misery loved me_

The remaining hour is spent jumping and singing to the other songs that followed Fall Out Boy's. I don't realize it when we stopped in a big clearing in the middle of the forest. I don't think the other students had realized it either. We've finally arrived.

--- (Sasuke POV) ---

The weekend, and the weekdays following that, go by quickly, and it's Thursday again. Naruto and I talk a little more, but I still… I don't quite know how to put it. I don't like this Naruto, but I don't hate him either. We get along, but I still push him away. He notices, but he understands. I can tell.

He still seems wary of his new friends; they're getting along better but he's always looking over at Hinata, Gaara, Chouji, and Gaara.

I now sit with them at lunch, but they're always glaring at me. Naruto notices, but has given up trying to get them to be nice to me. I couldn't care less. It was when I was stabbing viciously at my spaghetti when an announcement came on throughout the school.

"_Those of you are wishing to participate in this year's school play, come to the auditorium after school tomorrow. This year's school play will be Romeo and Juliet."_

Almost immediately, Shikamaru, Kiba, Neji, and Lee break out into grins. "Don't forget to tell Iruka you're staying after school, Naruto." I roll my eyes. Everyone at school knows that, every year, all five of them try out for whatever the school play is. None of them ever make it.

Naruto looks at me, then at his new friends, a confused look on his face. "For the play? Why would I try out for that?" Wow, even if I wasn't already convinced this wasn't really Naruto, I sure would be now. Naruto can never put two and two together.

Kiba kicks Naruto's shin under the table, making him bang the table underneath with his knee and hiss in pain. "Dude, what's with you? We try out every year! So be sure to be in the auditorium after school tomorrow!" With that, and a grin, Shikamaru, Kiba, Neji, and Lee all pick up their trays, stand up, and walk off.

Naruto props and his leg up on the seat next to him and rubs his shin. "Sasuke, will you come with me?" He turns to me and smiles sincerely. The other Naruto would stick out his bottom lip in a pout and widen his big blue eyes.

"Sure, dobe, why not?" With that, we pick up our trays to finish the rest of the day.

---

Getting permission from Iruka and Kakashi, Naruto and I slowly shuffle into the auditorium, immediately noticing the huge lit up stage, with Sakura standing on his reciting from a script she was holding. About fifty other students sat in the seats, watching and waiting their turn. We seat ourselves next to Naruto's friends.

"Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much, which mannerly devotion shows in this; For saints have hands that pilgrims' hands do touch, and palm to palm is holy palmers' kiss."

Kabuto-sensei, who is reciting Romeo's lines for Sakura, looks thrilled at this duty. "Have not saints lips, and holy palmers too?" They go on like this for a few minutes. Sakura's voice is shaky, and she keeps fidgeting and giggling while glancing at me. All in all, she sucks.

One by one, students go up on stage. Some are very good, while some are just horrible. Shikamaru, Kiba, Neji, and Lee were the latter. Shikamaru looked bored, Kiba kept pausing to insult people, Neji seemed to catch stage-fright and walked off-stage, while Lee was just too damn hyper. Finally it was Naruto's turn to go up.

"What scene will you be reading?" Kabuto asks, tapping his foot impatiently.

"Um. Act four, scene three." Kabuto looks relieved at the fact that he doesn't have to read some weird part, and motions for Naruto to go. Naruto clears his throat, shuffles his script, then begins:

"Come, bitter conduct, come, unsavoury guide! Thou desperate pilot, now at once run on the dashing rocks thy sea-sick weary bark! Here's to my love!" With this he raises an imaginary bottle and drinks from it. "O true apothecary! Thy drugs are quick. Thus with a kiss I die."

The whole room is silent, even Sakura, who was glaring her fullest and making fists at him, is staring at him in awe. I'm pretty sure my own jaw is somewhere on the floor. Then the room erupts in loud clapping, and half of them were giving him standing ovations.

Since the real Naruto can't act worth shit, I guess it makes since this one can act really, really great. Kabuto follows Naruto off-stage and over to us, trying to find his voice. "We'll..um…we'll call you tomorrow if you made the cast."

---

**Yes, I'm aware this chapter is short. It was supposed to be, because I was trying to get it up on Friday, but I couldn't so here it is today. Once again, I don't own Romeo and Juliet. Hope you enjoyed this small chapter, new character in the next one!**

**One review for this chapter equals me writing Chapter 7. Love ya guys!**


	7. Playing Games

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of the characters, or Bloody Mary.**

**Hey, sorry for the long update. Even though my excuse should be, "I was studying for my exams next week!" it's not. Instead, it's, "I found some more yaoi stories and got hooked!" I just…can't resist. XD I'll start on the picture probably tonight (May 18) since there's no American Idol and mom's home and will be on the computer, preventing me from writing this. So there's a new character in this. Some of you may like him, some of you may not. And hopefully this chapter will be longer, to make up from Chapter 6. Here ya go. Ah, by the way, some yaoi in this chapter. Nothing major, I can't do lemons or anything close to them. I'll die of blood loss.**

**---**

**Chapter 7: Playing Games**

**(Oh, just so you know, Sasuke (real one) has mixed feelings about the new Naruto. He tolerates him, and his personality is more bearable than Naruto's loud one, but he still prefers the old to the new. I'll try to make that more clear, sorry!)**

When I step off the bus, I'm pleasantly surprised when fresh air hits my nose full force. I breathe in slowly, enjoying the rare smell. I immediately stop when Sasuke shoves me lightly from behind. It may sound weird, but I can hear him smiling when he talks. "I'm glad you're already enjoying this, Naru-chan, but you're blocking the door."

I blush slightly and walk forward. I just notice that the tents and other larger supplies, such as coolers, are already waiting for us, set up. "Did someone come here before us?" I ask Sasuke.

He snorts good-naturedly. "Yep, Mr. Obvious. Tsunade-sama and probably a few other teachers she dragged out here set these up. Kind souls, we don't have to do the work." He grins, and I return it.

---

The pairs chose their own tents, and set their backpacks in it. All of us now sit around a very large campfire, assortments of food laid out on tables that are off to the side. We dragged out a few long logs for us to sit on, me sitting on the edge and beside Sasuke.

Iruka, currently toasting a marshmallow sticking at the end of a stick over the fire, turns to Shikamaru. "All right, your turn for a scary story. Know any?" Shikamaru chews on his bottom lip thoughtfully for a moment.

"Well, it's not really a _story_," he chirps. Yes, chirps. I'm still getting used to some things. "A hundred years ago, there was a witch by the name of Mary. There was a horrible accident, and her face became horribly mutilated." He's now talking in a slow whisper, and I, along with others, find myself leaning forward to hear better.

"If you go in a completely dark bathroom, look in the mirror, and chant "Bloody Mary" three times while spinning around, her horrible, mutilated face will appear in the mirror and pull you into the mirror forever. If you're lucky," he chuckles darkly, "she'll just gauge your eyes out."

I feel a shiver run up my spine, and I can tell quite a few others were horrified. If I'm scare of dark rooms with mirrors after this, I'll kill Shikamaru. Chouji snorts, though, and grins.

"Nah, man. You got it wrong. You turn and chant "Mary Worth" seventeen times, with lit candles in the bathroom." After this comment, a small fight broke out; people saying different number of times you spin around, different names you call her, and so on. I groan. This ruins the spooky mood.

My eyes wander over to the table, and immediately my mood lifts up. I nudge Sasuke in the ribs to get his attention. "Be right back, getting some ramen," I smirk, licking my lips in anticipation.

Before I realize it though, Sasuke grips my elbow and yanks me back down, hard, and glares at me. "Not funny, Naruto. I know you're allergic; don't touch that stuff." With that, he turns around to gaze into the fire.

_Damn it, this sucks. The real Naruto that belongs in this world is allergic to ramen_! I look over at Sasuke. _Wonder if he's suspicious? I do find him giving me odd looks when he thinks I'm not looking._

I settle for s'mores and silently listen in to the other conversations before it's time to head off to our tents.

---

I yawn, fumbling around with my sleeping bag and pillow while Sasuke does the same next to me. We strip down to our boxers, and I feel him glance at me a few times as I stuff my clothes and backpack in the corner and next to my sleeping bag.

We just stare at the roof of the tent for a few moments, feeling awkward for the first time in a while. Finally, he turns to me. "So, do you believe in stuff like that? Ghosts, Bloody Mary, and all that, I mean."

"Hmm," I mumble. I turn to him as well, and grin. "I guess so. I'm not too freaked out about it, but I do believe in it, yeah." We lay there, just staring at each other. Silently and slowly, almost like he's unsure, Sasuke reaches his hand out, over the very small, almost nonexistent space between our two bags, and traces along my cheek.

I just stare at him, feeling myself blush, and move closer to him. _Wait, don't move closer! What the hell are you doing? You don't even like him like that. Well, you do, but not this Sasuke..well..God you know what I mean!_

His own blush rising over his cheeks, he scoots his body over to mine as well, moving his hand so that it wraps lightly around my waist. Another staring moment. Then, as if in slow-motion, I watch as he moves his face closer to mine, until our lips lightly touch.

Sasuke's eyes close automatically at the contact, as do mine. Immediately, my thoughts are invaded by Sasuke. Another one. The one that throws insults carelessly at me, not putting any heart in them. The one that seems obsessed almost with his brother. The one that broke our promise, along with my heart.

After a moment, it seems, of this, Sasuke wraps tighter around my waist, kissing me more deeply. I return the kiss, just as deeply, wrapping a hand in his spiky hair, my mind fogged up.

He moans slightly, opening his mouth and trailing his tongue along my bottom lip, his nails softly raking, begging, over my bare back. I open my mouth, forcing myself not to moan when his tongue slides into my mouth, exploring, meeting my tongue.

I don't know how long we do this, I just know for a long time. We take a few, small breaks to catch our breath, and immediately we go back in for more. I barely notice it when Sasuke puts both hands on my shoulders, sitting up slightly but not severing the contact of our mouths, and turns me gently on my back, and straddles me.

He crushes his lips against mine passionately, his tongue wrestling with mine. I do notice, however, when one of his hands releases my shoulder, skims over my body, every once in a while massaging my arm or side, and stops at the rim of my boxers and tugs down on them.

I gasp and break our kiss, barely stopping myself from yelling in shock. He stops tugging and just rests his hand on my boxers, two of his fingers curled over the rim and softly touching the skin underneath. We just stare at each other, breathing hard.

When I looked at him, I fought back a strange, sudden urge to cry at the sight. My mind cleared up when the heated kissing was broken, and I realize who I really was kissing. Him, but not him.

I shake my head at him, both in disbelief at my lack of control and at Sasuke. "I can't…" I trail off. He nods, understanding, and rests his forehead against mine and just stares into my eyes.

We stay like that for a few moments, just staring into each other's eyes. Then, as I watch his eyes, they light up in some sudden realization. He unhooks his fingers from my boxers and puts his forearms on each side of me, using them to keep all his weight off of me, but still stares down at me.

I can sense what's coming, and my thoughts are confirmed when, slightly hesitating and his voice shaking, "Who are you?" I sit up, gently pushing him off me, and we sit there side by side.

"This may…will sound weird to you, Sasuke. Remember the day I acted so strange. Called you names?" I ask.

"You still act strange," he murmurs, and I nod, knowing what he means. "But yeah, I remember."

"This…isn't my world. It is, but it's like…a parallel one. I don't know why or how, but I woke up that morning here. Everyone acting so strange to me." I stare at him. "You have to believe me."

He stares at the walls of the tent thoughtfully. "How are we different?"

I laugh silently, remembering my real world and the people in it. "Shikamaru's really lazy, Chouji eats a ton, Sakura was a rude bitch that clung to you for dear life. All the girls in my school were…are…obsessed with you. And you. We're not friends."

Sasuke looks sad at this thought. "Never?"

"We were when we were little. The promise we made happened with me and Sasuke, too. Except…he broke it. Unlike you, he couldn't handle it when Itachi killed his parents. He became sullen, vengeful, broke off all friendships with everyone. Itachi is all he thinks about. Ever since then, we weren't friends. Instead, when we met in the hall, we'd throw insults at each other. Thing is…both of us never mean it. We know we could never mean the things we say. He says them to keep his distance from me, and other people. I say them because," I pause here, taking a breath, "I want him to think that I don't care anymore."

"But you do," Sasuke whispers, looking at me. All I can do is nod. Silence, then… "What happened the day you came to this world?"

"Same as usual. Back in my world, I'm hated by…quite a few people. It's my personality. I'm just…sick of being treated like shit. I wish they would accept me, I wish that Sasuke would let me back in…"

"You wish that they would change," Sasuke states, and slowly, I nod. "Maybe you came here for a reason. To us, to this parallel world. To see us, opposites of your world's, and to see what you never had." He pauses. "And also, to see what you'd miss. Do you miss them?"

I nod, letting a tear escape down my cheek. Sasuke lifts a finger and wipes it off carefully. "I do miss them. I miss my classmates. I miss my friends. I miss Sasuke." I take a shaky breath. "I know now what I have back there. Why am I still here?"

Sasuke grins slightly. "You know what you have, Naruto. But you're here, aren't here. That must mean the Naruto that originally is in this world is in your's. I think your Sasuke needs to realize what he has, too."

Silently, I nod in agreement. He removes a strand of my spiky blond hair from my eyes and returns to his own sleeping bag. "Night, Naruto," he whispers.

"Night, Sasuke. Thank you…" I whisper, and immediately we're both asleep.

---

Saturday was one of the best days I remember. Sasuke woke me up at 10am, and we got dressed and went outside for a good, unhealthy breakfast of champions. This being a fun camping trip, the teachers didn't say a word. Sasuke had s'mores, while I had ramen. Everyone else looked at me strangely, since I was supposed to be allergic. But Sasuke knew the real reason.

We play a few games first. Such as three-legged races, tug-of-war, and had swimming races in a nearby lake. Sasuke and I failed miserably at the three-legged races, we kept falling over and laughing. But our team only lost once out of five games at tug-of-war. I sucked at swimming, but Sasuke was great at it.

Then came the scavenger hunt. We got with our partners, were all given a compass and a piece of paper with the first clue on it, and the first team back with the prize won. Jiraiya-sensei blew his whistle, and off we went.

We started out slow, but soon got the hang of it. We were deep in a secluded part of the forest when we came across another clearing with a large boulder in it, right by a beautiful waterfall.

"We have to come back later before we leave," Sasuke whispered, and I nodded. We rested on the boulder for a few minutes, talking about how different our worlds were. We finally came across what we were looking for, which happened to be a dog leash. Better not to ask. We went back to camp, and got second place.

---

Sasuke and I finish packing our things for the ride back home in two hours. I can't help but feel sad. I love it here. Sasuke couldn't believe it when I said we don't do things like this at my school, only a school play.

Sasuke grins at me. "We have some time to kill. Let's slip out and get one last look at our secret place." It sounds romantic, yes, but we're nothing more than friends. It's hard to explain, but we know each other, but at the same time we don't. Our hearts belonged to the ones we grew up with.

I nod. "Sounds good." With that, we unzip our tent and silently sneak outside. The three teachers were busy packing their own bags, and I think I saw Iruka-sensei and Kakashi-sensei sneak a kiss. I look at Sasuke and he saw it too, we both grin and snort softly.

We walk on for about twenty minutes, talking quietly about different things. I look at him. "Sasuke, I came here without knowing what was going to happen. Without warning. The same thing will probably happen if," I stop myself then, and grin confidently, "_when_ I go back. So, I just want to say bye now." I blush slightly, knowing how dumb this sounds.

But Sasuke only smiles, knowing exactly what I mean. He claps a hand on my shoulder. "I'll remember you. And I hope when you go back, things will look up for you."

"Same for you."

We finally arrive at the clearing, and I can't help but feel sad. I know I'm not leaving tonight or anything, but I know if I didn't say bye just now, there was a chance I wouldn't ever be able to.

My sadness is instantly wiped away when we arrive at the boulder and waterfall. Sasuke's face darkens, looking much more like the real Sasuke. I stare at the person already sitting lazily on the boulder, looking down at us. Almost as if waiting.

He has long black hair tied in a loose pony-tail, strange lines under his disturbing black eyes. He wore a form-fitting sleeve-less shirt, showing off his lean muscles in his arms. Black, slightly baggy jeans adorns his lower half, and black boots.

I glance at Sasuke, now anger flashing across his face. He may not have held a life-long, vengeful grudge against him, but it doesn't surprise me at all that he's mad now. I glare back at the man on the rock, not much older than us, probably eighteen or nineteen.

Itachi Uchiha.

--- (Sasuke POV) ---

I'm dragged to Pizza Hut after the auditions, and I sit there moodily nibbling on the disgusting thing while Naruto's friends moon over his audition. I was shocked, too, but I've gotten over it. I know the real reason why he suddenly got great acting skills.

"Why didn't you tell us you could act? Did you seriously try to look bad all these years?" Kiba practically yelled, leaning over the table, making Akamaru cling for life to his head. "Sorry buddy," he apologizes, sitting back down and Akamaru just barks, jumps down, and digs into one of Kiba's slices of pizza.

Naruto grins and looks at me. "Sorry for dragging you here," he says, but honestly, he doesn't look sorry.

"Hn."

Shikamaru, Kiba, Neji, and Lee all roll their eyes at me and give Naruto a look that easily says, "Why the hell is he here in the first place? He's. A. JACKASS!" I can tell Naruto notices, but just ignores them. The other Naruto would just simply…not notice.

Another hour passes in Torture Hut, and I'm getting fed up with being around these people for so long. So I simply snort, get up, and walk out. All I give Naruto is a glance. I can sense four pairs of glaring lasers hitting my head, but I don't care.

---

I'm in the kitchen warming up some lasagna when there's a knock on the door. I roll my eyes. _Wonder who it is_. _One guess._ I stroll over to the front door and open it. Naruto. "Hn," I greet and walk back into the kitchen to remove the lasagna from the microwave.

Naruto just plops down into a chair and sighs. "Hey, I know I haven't known you for long, and I'm aware you don't like being around people, but did you have to be so rude? Just…getting up and leaving?"

I stay silent while I scoop the lasagna from the bowl and onto a plate, placing the now-empty bowl in the sink. Kakashi can wash it when he gets home later, whenever that'll be.

"Yeah," I say, quite bluntly. "I make it quite clear to everyone that I want nothing to do with you, or anyone else. I guess there are some similarities between you and the real Naruto. Thickness."

"I thought we've been friends this past we-"

"I. Don't. Have. Friends," I turn around and glare at him. "I can put up with you. That's it. So why are you here," I mutter, taking a seat at the other end of the table and taking a bite of lasagna.

He shrugs. "Wanted to tell you I got a part in Romeo and Juliet. Romeo. Juliet is Ino," he wrinkles his nose slightly.

I shrug, too. "Naruto can't act. You can. Not surprising you got the call." Naruto just grunts, looking at the wall.

I finish my lasagna, and, to get away from Naruto, I head for the bathroom, stripping my shirt off on the way. I turn on the shower, and thirty minutes later (I made it longer, just in case he'd still be there,) when I check the kitchen, he's gone.

---

"Why are you?" I mutter darkly to him. Sunday afternoon, and Naruto is once again at my door, this time holding his Romeo and Juliet script. They're both stubborn, too.

"Well, since I'm your only friendly acquaintance, and I need help with lines, I came over. Kabuto arrived at my house with the script, so I can start memorizing it," he explains. God, at least the real Naruto let me be, even though he didn't want to.

I'm about to say no, when I look in his eyes. Determined eyes. I hate him, but while I'm thinking this I have to stop myself from smiling. I don't smile. "Fine," I grunt.

"Let's go to the pier and do it. It's nice outside today," he says. I reply with a 'Whatever' while pulling out my cell-phone to send Kakashi a message, while stepping outside. "What's your problem?" Naruto asks.

I ignore him and continue texting the message. "It's not healthy for you to be like this. I know you hate Itachi-" I stiffen and stop texting, and I glare at him- "but you need to let some people in. I can see it in your eyes, deep inside, you miss Naruto. The Sasuke in my world is happy. He doesn't brood over this. Why do you?"

Looking back at my cell-phone, I continue to text the message. On the surface of my mind, I snort. _Miss him? Yeah right._ Deep inside, another voice intrudes. _You do._ I shake my head.

In surprise, I drop my cell and it rolls down the hill, when Naruto shoves me. Without a second thought, I stop myself from punching him and just shove him back, harder. We go on like this, refraining from using fists, when we stop to just glare.

Turning and stomping down the hill, I search around for the cell-phone. Naruto helps, after muttering a hurried 'Sorry.' I'm getting angrier and angrier, when I finally find it. Not the cell-phone, but a note. Damn fan girls. Instead of a cell-phone, I find a note. The weird stalkers have gotten quieter.

_Sasuke-kun,_

_If you want your cell-phone back, meet me in the alley by the pier ASAP. Come alone._

It's signed with a heart. "Come on, dobe," I snarl. Like hell I care what some high-school brat tells me to do. He's coming along for, when the freak tries to jump me, he can help me get her off. It's his fault. Naruto only nods and follows.

---

"So, where's the alley?" Naruto asks when we reach the pier. I grunt and point over to two deserted buildings an the alley. We make our way over there.

We sigh and walk in. It's long, and smelly. I hate girls, I hate girls…I stop myself from gagging when we pass a dumpster, and about two minutes later I reach a dead-end. No weird girl waiting. Just another note, and on top of that, my cell-phone. I grab it and stuff it in my pocket, reading the note. For some reason, icy fear grips my stomach.

_I told you to come alone._

I crumple the note up and throw it back down. "Let's go, Naruto. The bitch is just playing gam-" I stop when I turn around. Naruto isn't there. I sigh. "Naruto, you're too scared to enter a damn alley?" I slightly raise my voice and walk back. I stop when I reach the dumpster, and hear a noise.

My eyes widen when a figure steps from the other side of the dumpster. Naruto. Not just him, though. One hand wrapped tightly around his mouth, muffling his screams. Above, the cold, emotionless face of my brother. In Itachi's other hand was a sharp knife, and it was at Naruto's throat.

---

**Yup, made this slightly longer. And Itachi makes an appearance, yay! I'll be drawing, eventually XD Sasuke and Naruto at the pier, for the 40 reviews, Itachi. The next I'll be drawing is when I reach 100 reviews, if I ever will get that many. P Well, please review!**


	8. Uchiha Itachi

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of the characters, which really sucks. ;;**

**Yes, I am alive! Sorry for the long long wait, I feel horrible! –cries- I had exams, and then writer's block. I didn't know quite what to do with this chapter, and I still don't. All these chapters just write themselves after I start, but this chapter might come out a little..bad. So sorry in advance for the long wait for a bad chapter! –gives out cookies as an apology-**

**---**

**Chapter 8: Uchiha Itachi**

Sasuke and I both stand there, anger written all over our faces as we look up at Sasuke's older brother. I'm also grateful at the fact that Sasuke didn't take one look at him, say, "YOU!" and charge at him. He'd probably be dead, and I'm not talking about Itachi.

Sasuke takes a small step forward and I reach out to stop him from doing something stupid, but he just stops and snarls, "What are you doing here?" He's not even talking to me and shivers run down my spine.

All Itachi does, though, is stand up and brush the nonexistent dirt off his clothes. I catch a glimpse of a gun in his back pocket, and now instead of anger there's fear coursing through me.

"Be careful, Sasuke," I murmur, nodding towards Itachi. Sasuke only nods back in acknowledgement, murmuring 'I know' back. As for Itachi, jumps off the boulder and gracefully lands on the ground, his eyes never leaving Sasuke's. I wonder if he even knows I'm here.

"What?" he chuckles and folds his arms over his chest. "What kind of greeting is that, little brother? No hug or anything, just a mean face?" He smiles gently, but when I look in his black eyes all I see is…sadness?

Sasuke just snarls again. "What are you doing here? You have no business being here, or are you here to finish your family off?"

"What? I missed my little brother. I can't drop by for a visit?" He slowly reaches out a hand, index finger out, and pokes Sasuke right in the middle of his forehead.

He rubs the spot where he was poked and glares. "I didn't like it when I was younger, I don't like it now. Leave, Itachi," he orders.

Itachi just stands there, and then blurts out the oddest question ever. "Can I stay with you?" We just stand there, and I can't help but put a finger in my ear and clean it out. The hell did he just say?

"Yeah right, why would I let you stay with me?" Sasuke asks, after getting over the oddness of his brother's question.

"I…" he falters, and looks down at the ground. "I regret what I did," he looks up after he says this, almost pleadingly.

I scoff, while Sasuke snorts and turns away. I walk away backwards, keeping an eye on Itachi's gun. I don't really feel like getting shot in the back. "Yeah right."

Itachi's obviously much faster then what we thought, because before we can blink he's right behind Sasuke. Before we can blink _again_, he's on the ground, kneeling, with one hand clutching Sasuke's shirt.

"You have to believe me, Sasuke, I regret what I did. Please," he practically begs, but refuses to look Sasuke in the eye.

"Why did you do it? Really?" he asks, ripping Itachi's hand away from his shirt.

"Take me home with you, I'll tell you the truth. I'll do anything," he says quietly, reclaiming Sasuke's shirt. All Sasuke does is stand there, staring at him. I can't help but raise my eyebrows in wonder; he's thinking about.

"One problem, Itachi. In case you haven't noticed, we're kind of on a camping trip."

"I'll meet you at your house, you can sneak me in through a window so Kakashi won't see me…"

"How the hell do you know where I live and who I live with?"

"I've been watching you for a while, little brother… I've wanted your forgiveness for a long time." He finally looks up and looks Sasuke right in the eye, and I faintly see Sasuke nod.

"I…I haven't told anyone it was you, that night. They all believe you're dead, taken away by the murderer. Can't think of the Great Uchiha Itachi as a murderer," Sasuke smirks lightly. "We have to get back to camp."

He forces his shirt out of Itachi's grip once again, and nods to me. "I'll listen to what you have to say at my house," Sasuke says, before we both turn to leave. As we go back through the bushes and trees, for the first time, I feel Itachi's gaze burning into my back.

---

When we get back to camp, the buses are being loaded and the teachers are glaring at us. "What took you so long?" Iruka snaps, and we mumble about getting lost. "Well, what were doing in the forest in the first place? You knew we were leaving today!"

We can't think up of anything for that, our minds elsewhere, so we end up with two detentions each when we got back. The ride back home was a blur, people sang along to the radio, but Sasuke and I just chose to stare out the window. _I wonder if Itachi is really serious? He seemed like he was…_ _Guess we'll just have to wait to find out._

---

"Wonder when he should be arriving, and where? Front door?" I ask once we get inside Sasuke's room. Sasuke asked me to be there when Itachi showed up, and of course I said I'd stay.

Sasuke shrugs. "Kakashi's known me for a long time, and he knows my whole family's dead. Or supposed to be. If Itachi just knocks on the front door and struts in, there will be a few raised questions. In case you haven't noticed, we look a lot alike." He grins and elbows me playfully in the ribs, sitting down on his bed.

I nod; he's right. Same facial shape, same hair, same eyes, same body structure. Only differences mainly was the length of their hair, their height, and Itachi has strange vertical lines under his eyes.

Around nine o'clock, while Sasuke and I just lounge around his room listening to his music CDs, Itachi taps on his window. Immediately Sasuke gets up and opens it and Itachi climbs through, looking nervous.

Wasting no time, Sasuke stands there, arms crossed, and snaps, "Explain." Itachi nods, sitting down next to me on the bed. I shift uncomfortably slightly, but I don't move.

"Do you remember how our parents used to treat you?" he asks Sasuke.

"Yeah, to be honest I guess you could say I was spoiled." Sasuke laughs softly, remembering back to his childhood. "Why?"

"They used to treat me the same way. I made the simplest compliment on something, they'd get it for me. They'd hug me, tuck me in bed. I don't know why, but they started treating me different when I entered second grade. You were only five then. All they talked about was grades, yelled at me, said to pick my grades up. Said I could do better.

"I thought they were just worried, they'd get over their paranoia about my future. But they didn't, and sometimes dad would even hit me." He shrugs. "Sure, all the teachers and other parents went on and on about my good behavior, good grades, good life. But my home life was ruined, our parents changed and I still don't know the reason why.

I became distant with everyone, and you, so they couldn't get the chance to find the tiniest flaw in how I act around someone. So instead they got mad because I was too 'antisocial.' Year after year, my anger and new-found hate just kept growing.

I watched how they treated you; with love. I wondered if they would turn on you the same way they had me. I wonder if I killed them in worry for you, revenge for me, or both. Anyway, you were at karate lessons one night, and dad had just beaten me up over this stupid ass party I declined.

I was pissed than I ever remember being; I guess it was from holding it all inside for years. So I snuck into dad's office and took one of his swords off the wall, and killed them both while they were on the couch.

You came into the room in, and I just thought of the first excuse that came to my mind. I was selfishly mad at you, for mom and dad treating you how they used to treat me. So I punched you, and ran.

I admit I'm not sorry about killing them, I don't regret that. But I do regret leaving you alone, Sasuke." He stops there and stares at the floor, Sasuke seems to be in a daze.

"Excuse me for a moment, I have to…think and get…some water…" he trails off, leaving the room. I once again feel Itachi's eyes on me, and before I realize what he's doing, he reaches up and fingers my spiky blond hair.

"Your hair is interesting," he comments, and I'm not sure whether it's a compliment or insult.

"Um…yeah. I like it, I guess," I shrug, blushing slightly. Itachi leans forward and towards me to look me straight in the face, no clue why, when Sasuke comes back. We immediately snap our attention to him.

"Mom and dad…were really like that?" he asks, and Itachi nods. Silence. "I can't…fully forgive you for killing our parents. And leaving me. But…it'd be nice…to have you around more…" he mumbles, and Itachi smiles.

--- (Sasuke POV) ---

"Itachi," I snarl, anger and hate boiling up inside me. The only reason why I don't charge him now is for the most obvious reason; Naruto's safety. Stupid dobe, even the less irritating parallel-version of him gets in the way.

He merely cocks an eyebrow at me, and glares at me coolly. "Foolish little brother, you should've just listened. Instead you chose to bring him along. You could've saved his life…" With that, he presses the knife against Naruto's throat even more and I see a thin line of blood trickle.

"Let him go. Now," I snarl again, but I'm just answered with a cool stare. Naruto stares at me with wide eyes, trying not to breathe too hard or move in any way. "Why are you here?"

"I just thought I'd come visit you and see if you remember me." He gives a small smirk. I growl and scuff my foot against the ground, stopping myself from lunging at him.

"No, I don't remember you at all," I hiss, venom leaking from my voice. "Who the hell are you again?" Why _is_ he here? He's only endangering himself and me. Me because I'll attack him and he'll probably kick my ass. Himself because people believe him dead, and if they see him…

"Really?" he asks, mock sadness entering his eyes. "I'm your _dear_ big brother. Remember how you came home one night, eight years ago, and found your _loving_ parents dead?"

"Stop, shut up," I snap, but he ignores me.

"I remember it like it was yesterday. How the fools were just sitting there, oblivious. How I picked up our father's sword and snuck up behind them- "

"SHUT UP!" I all but scream, but he pauses for a second and only moves his hand from Naruto's mouth to his hair. He firmly grips it and violently yanks his head up, Naruto whimpering slightly, and stretches out his throat.

"How I snuck up behind them," he continues, "and they turned and asked me what I was doing. They only saw the sword a second before I slashed father's throat. Mother got up and tried to run, but I grabbed her wrist and I remember hearing a crack," he grins sadistically.

"Mother screamed and tried to yank my hand away with her other one, but I just slashed her throat as well. She collapsed on father, jolting him slightly and he danged half-off the couch. Blood was everywhere, but then again, you remember don't you Sasuke?"

I collapse on my knees on the cold ground and clutch my head, willing the memories of that horrible day to go away. "I HATE YOU!" I scream. "I'LL KILL YOU, I SWEAR I WILL!"

Itachi merely smirks, and Naruto whispers, "Sasuke, just run…" Itachi shakes his head violently, rubbing his throat against the knife slightly, and he hisses in pain.

From the entrance of the alley, I can't believe my eyes with Sakura steps in slightly. I can see her squint her eyes, trying to see, since it's darker in the back where we were.

"Sasuke-kun?" she yells down at us. "Is that you? I thought I heard you scream," she yells down at us, probably just shadowy figures to her. So she's good for something.

Surprised, Itachi twists his body around to look at the intruder. I know what I'm about to do has a very high chance of killing Naruto, but it's also the only chance I have to get him away from my psychotic brother while he's distracted.

With Naruto and the death of my brother in my mind, I get up quickly and quietly and lunge towards Itachi and Naruto.

---

**Meh..wonder why I always make Sasuke's POV shorter than Naruto's? I just..do..can't help it. XD And sorry if you're hating the whole, "SORRY SASUKE FORGIVE ME!111!" Itachi. He is sorry, he has no tricks up his sleeve. Sorry for the long wait for this chapter, I'll try to make the next one much shorter. Hopefully with a picture coming along with it, too. -.-; Also, if you like Final Fantasy VII, keep on the look-out for two one-shots I'll be writing soon about Cloud and Zack. Also, should I include a liiiiiiittle bit of one-sided Itachi x Naruto? (Remember Itachi's little staring problem with our Naru-chan)**

**Crematosis: **Yes well, besides Sasuke, Itachi is my favorite person in Naruto. So I just had to get him in this story in all his sexy glory! It is hard keeping them in character, but it's all worth it hopefully. Your story is amazing too, I'm in love with it! And Albel…I just get depressed when I remember he's not a real person. –sigh-

**BloodMistress:** Sorry for the cliffhanger. I hate them, too, but it also makes the wait worth it sometimes. When I'm reading other stories…o.O Sorry for not updating soon, it took a long time for this one.

**Rice-Ball247: **It can get very hard. I try to make them different and similar, but still not so similar that they're boring. xx Yes, Itachi's just…awesome. Heh. XD

**Guardian of the Hell Gate:** Sorry for the long wait, and I'm also sorry that you still don't know if Naruto will be alright or not. )


	9. Picture One

**Picture Number One**

**Yes, I know it's taken a while. But the picture I promised you guys for 20 reviews is now up. The Itachi picture, for 40 reviews, will hopefully be up tomorrow, along with Chapter 9. The third picture will be for 100 reviews, and the first reviewer to request a scene, any scene at all, from OoaK, I'll draw that. First come, first serve. But first, 100 reviews. Here's the link, I'm also putting it as a link for my homepage. Watch for the spaces.**

**ht tp/www. devianta /view/**** 34399918/**


	10. Until it's Gone

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of the characters. Why do I have to say this in every chapter? –sigh-**

**So, those of you who are patient, or kind, or bored enough to read the author's notes at the top and bottom responded to the "Should I put some ItaNaru stuff in?" So I will, it won't be mutual, though. It will mostly be Itachi freaking Naruto out. Also, since I've been writing Sasuke's POV so dang short, Naruto's POV will mostly be like a filler. Like those things the anime's on right now. Grr…**

**---**

**Chapter 9: Until it's Gone**

"Mom and dad…were really like that?" Sasuke asks, and Itachi nods. Silence. "I can't…fully forgive you for killing our parents. But…it'd be nice…to have you around more…," he mumbles, and Itachi smiles.

"Thank you, Sasuke," he says, and Sasuke just nods, letting out a breath he didn't notice he was holding. I smile a little, too, at the whole brother make-up thing. It's sweet. I get up and walk downstairs to the kitchen. I've discovered that I can raid their kitchen as I please.

As I pass through the living room, Kakashi's sitting on the couch watching a subbed anime show. I don't know what it was, but it had some hot purple-haired, purple-eyed guy with black wings on the screen at the moment.

I search through their refrigerator and cabinets. To my surprised delight, I found a packet of beef ramen. I'm not sure who eats ramen in this house, but I don't really care. It's mine now!

Putting the pot filled with a cup of water on the stove, I turn it on and lean against the counter, waiting for it to boil. I hear footsteps, and I look up expecting to see Kakashi coming in to ask what I was doing-he's nosy- but instead it's Itachi.

"Where's Sasuke?" I ask, wondering if he's hungry, too. I can't help but feel a little uneasy with the way he's been staring at me.

Itachi leans against the counter right beside me, intently staring. Again. "He's in the shower," he says, and I hope he got in the shower _after_ I turned the water on. I didn't hear screaming curses, so I guess it's fine.

"Oh." There's a few seconds of silence, and I glance at the pot to see it's still not boiling. "Did you need something? You can help yourself." I motion towards the fridge and cabinets then shrug nonchalantly.

I turn away from him when he starts staring at me again, but this time he has this weird look on his face. "I can…help myself?" he asks, and I get this gut feeling he's not talking about the kitchen.

Swallowing, I grab the beef ramen packet and poor the noodles and seasoning into the now-boiling pot. "Yeah, did you let Kakashi see you on the way here, by the way?" I ask, trying to change the subject.

Three minutes now. Itachi shakes his head. "I went the long way here, around the living room. Even if I did go through the living room, he wouldn't have noticed me. You're beautiful."

The last statement completely caught me off guard. I stare at him, feeling uneasy. "Um…thanks…I guess. Um…you better go back upstairs. Just in case Kakashi decides to come in. He does that…yeah. Sasuke told me about this one time- " I was rambling now. I knew it. He knew it. To my horror, he stops my mouth from moving in the worst possible way.

His mouth is on mine, his hand at the back of my head holding onto my hair lightly. I thought he'd be violent and threaten to throw me out the window or something if I tried to fight, but instead it seems like he's almost shy.

Itachi knows Sasuke and I aren't going out; we straightened those things out back in our tent when I told him who I really was. So in a way, he's not really doing anything wrong. He's trying to get me to open my mouth, but instead I pull away.

I look away from him, blushing. He's a little red in the cheeks, too. "Sorry," he mumbles. The stove goes off; three minutes is up. I turn it off and pour the ramen into the bowl slowly and carefully.

"It's okay…I'm sorry, but I don't- "

"I know. I just…yeah. I don't know."

"Naruto, I'm out of the shower!" Sasuke calls from his room. "So if you wanted to use it, you can!" I don't respond, and when I turn back around Itachi has gone back to the room. I lean against the counter, fork and bowl in hand, and from the next room I hear Kakashi's anime ending.

_Nante dare mo wakatte wa kurenai_

_Mayotte kyou mo yuku basho nante nai_

_Sore demo machi wa ugoki hajimeteru_

_Watashi wo oite_

_Nobody understands_

_Lost, I don't have a destination today either_

_But still, I start moving down the street_

_Leaving myself behind_

With the beloved ramen, I make my way to Sasuke's room as well. I walk in to see Itachi sprawled across the bed, looking deep in thought, and Sasuke sitting on the window sill looking strangely at Itachi.

Hearing my footsteps, both look up. "Hey Naruto, what'd you do to Itachi?" Sasuke teases, noticing his brother's odd behavior. I can't help glancing over at him, and I turn away and blush when our eyes meet.

I shrug. "Maybe he saw Kakashi's porn book on the way to the kitchen."

Sasuke frowns. "Kakashi doesn't read porn…but I told him when he came in he shouldn't go anywhere near Kakashi, just in case. He killed our parents when I was little, I was able to forgive him and sneak him in while everyone thinks he's dead. What does he do? Skips off to the kitchen while Kakashi is in the other room." He glares at Itachi, but he doesn't seem to have heard and just stares at the ceiling.

I lean against the wall and stuff a large amount of ramen into my mouth. The moment the taste hit my tongue, I instantly forgot about chewing and just swallowed. "It was risky." I glance at Itachi, but he's still mentally not here, seemingly not aware of us talking about him as if he wasn't here. I'm pretty sure I know why, but I'm not about to bring it up. Especially with Sasuke in the room.

I finish off the ramen and sigh in content. "Hey, Itachi," I say, slapping on my usual huge trademark grin. He shifts and looks at me, waiting. "Since you and Sasuke are cool, and I'm Sasuke's best friend, does that mean we're friends?" I grin again nonchalantly, but we both Itachi and I know it's a roundabout way of asking if everything is okay now.

Itachi seems to think for a moment, while Sasuke presses his forehead against the cool glass and smiles, chuckling. "Of course, don't be stupid," he finally answers. We share a smile that only we can interpret, while Sasuke announces that he's going to bed.

--- (Sasuke POV) ---

With Naruto and the death of my brother in my mind, I get up quickly and quietly and lunge towards Itachi and Naruto. What happens next seems to go in slow motion. I grab Itachi's wrist, the one holding the knife, and jerk it away from Naruto's throat.

I grab the front of the dobe's shirt quickly, catching a glimpse of a thin line of blood on his throat. My stomach lurches, but I ignore it. Doing those two things only took a split second, and before Itachi can fully turn around to stab me, I violently push his arm, driving the knife into his right shoulder.

He stands there, looking at me. I stand there, glaring up at him, hate rushing through me. For the first time in years, I see an emotion –anger- flash through his eyes, but it's gone again when I blink.

We're interrupted by a shrill scream, and I look behind Itachi to see Sakura standing two feet away, a hand clasped around her mouth, just standing there in fear and shock. I can't see what Naruto is doing right now, but probably doing the same thing.

Instead of slow motion, it happens in the blink of an eye this time. I wonder if that was what it was like for Itachi. "SASUKE-KUN!" Sakura screams, while Itachi tightly wraps a hand around my throat and shoves me against the wall.

There's a searing pain in my right shoulder, and I clench my eyes shut trying to get rid of the pain. I open them and look down to see the bloody knife that, not seconds before, was buried in Itachi's right shoulder.

From out of the corner of my eye, I see panic cross over Naruto's face and he takes a step forward. Itachi responds by twisting the knife slightly, and I let out a short hiss of pain. I glare up at him, but he only looks down at me with the same emotionless face.

Itachi grunts in pain and surprise as I bring my leg up, ramming my knee into his lower gut. Before he can recover, I put my foot between our bodies and push, separating our bodies, the knife leaving my body as he didn't let go of it.

"Bastard," I hiss, clenching my shoulder to try to stop the blood flow a little. Naruto rushes to my side, and I finally get a good look at his throat. It's a very shallow cut, barely any damage at all. I look to my left to see that Sakura is gone.

"I've got to be going. I'll finish this later, little brother." He gives me a faint smile, a mocking one, and before I know it he's gone. Naruto and I hear the faint sound of sirens as we leave, and we run the rest of the way to my house.

---

When we get to my house, we clean our wounds and bandage them, since we didn't want to make a big deal and go to the hospital. We then get dressed in clean clothes. Neither of us has talked, since we both know I'd rather think about what had just happened.

The odd thing is, my mind keeps wondering to Naruto. How I would've reacted if he died, how I would've reacted if the real Naruto died. I'm forced to admit that I'm still attached to him. Those childhood bonds hadn't gone away, they just went in hiding. I felt my heart drop when I thought about the possibility of never seeing him again.

I take the cell phone out of my pocket and toss it on the bed, and my thoughts are interrupted when the doorbell rings. Since Kakashi isn't home, again, I go downstairs to answer it, only to be greeted by two police officers and Sakura. Shit.

"Good evening, are you Uchiha Sasuke?" the first policeman, a slightly overweight one, asks. I nod, groaning mentally, and open the door wider to let the three in. Sakura looks nervous, probably wondering if she did the right or not. Despite that, she looks ecstatic to be inside my house. Just great.

"This young lady, Haruno Sakura, says she saw you and another young man in an alley, and you were attacked. Is this true?" As if on cue, Naruto appears, and not saying anything, we all head into the room to sit down.

"Yeah. It wasn't that big of a deal." The second police officer raises an eyebrow as he writes in a notepad, while the first is obviously the questioner.

"What happened exactly?"

"I was outside, going to the pier with my friend. We started to fight, and while I had my cell-phone out he shoves me and I drop it. We stop fighting to look for it, and find that someone took it and told me to meet her in the alley. I assumed it was a her because it was signed with a heart. It said to come alone, but I brought my friend and we were attacked."

"Do you still have this note?"

"No, I was angry and threw it on the ground."

"What did your attacker look like?"

I'm getting sick of this already, and I let out a sigh through my nose. "I didn't get a good look at him. I just know he was wearing dark clothes and had dark hair. I didn't get a name."

There's a pause as the second police officer writes the information down. "Miss Haruno states you were…stabbed?" He looks at Sakura for confirmation and she nods without looking at him.

"No sir. He tried to, but I moved away in time."

He doesn't ask for any more, and instead looks at Naruto now. You can see the thin pinkish line where he was cut, but the blood was gone now and was already healing. "What's your name?"

"Uzumaki Naruto."

"Where did you get that cut on your throat?"

"The guy in the alley that attacked us. I didn't get a good look at him either, my back was to him half the time."

The police officers nod, murmuring, "We thank you for your time," and leave, along with Sakura. Naruto turns to me and whispers, probably not realizing it, "Why didn't you tell them?"

I get up and head to my room, stripping my shirt off. "Because. It's not their job to find my parents' killer and punish him. It's mine. You can sleep on the couch or whatever," I say, shutting my bedroom door before he can say anything.

Stripping down to my boxers, I crawl in my bed and wonder why I keep thinking of Naruto and not of Itachi. I really do miss him. I guess it's true that you never truly appreciate something until it's gone.

---

**Sorry for the long wait. It was going to be up yesterday but I got hooked on this Naruto Arena game. It's really fun, you should try it. Naruto-arena. co m **

**Anyway, only 2-3 more chapters left until it's done. Sorry once again for the wait! Late than never, though. x.x**


	11. Late Night Activities

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Star Ocean**

**Hey, sorry for the wait. There will be three more chapters, including this one, until the end. Six more reviews and this story will reach 100, which I will then be drawing the make-out scene in the tent. Itachi pic will probably be up tonight. Um…so that's it. . PLAY NARUTO-ARENA! (naruto-arena. c o m)**

**---**

**Chapter 10: Late Night Activities**

--- (Naruto POV) ---

I remember staying the night at Sasuke's, and falling asleep on his huge bed slightly sandwiched between Sasuke and Itachi. In my dreams, I hear hushed voices going, "Shhh! On three." The next thing I know, two bodies are on top of mine and I'm wide awake.

"What the hell!" I scream, sitting up and trying to blink myself awake. I notice a pair of hungry eyes on my naked torso, and I give Itachi a tired look. He just smiles innocently and blushes slightly.

"There's school today, Naruto," Sasuke says, tugging me off the bed. I notice he's fully dressed, and I wonder how he can be awake so early. He laughs, shoves a pile of orange clothes in my arms and toast in my mouth and pushes me lightly in the bathroom.

"You seem excited," I grumble from inside the bathroom, pulling on a t-shirt with a fox on it and some jeans. I just hear Sasuke bouncing outside the door in excitement. I think he had too much caffeine, but whatever.

I emerge from the bathroom to be greeted with a half-naked Itachi and Sasuke smiling in a Cheshire cat way. "I'm having a small party tonight. I have it every year. I have plenty of invitations," Sasuke drops a stack of cards in my arms, "so invite who you want."

I'm still half asleep so I just look at the blue envelopes in my arms. "What about him?" I ask, looking at Itachi. Sasuke grins again, while Itachi just looks slightly wary.

"I got that covered."

---

Hinata, Chouji, Gaara, and Shino don't need invitations, since they're best friends with Sasuke and I. So during all my classes, I go around and hand everyone invitations. I haven't talked to Sakura much, so I'm still not sure what to expect when I walk up to her.

"Sakura-chan," I call out, walking up to her desk. She squeaks and looks up fromher book and blushes. "There's a party at Sasuke's tonight. All the info is on here," I say, smiling kindly and handing her an envelope.

"Mmm…thanks…Naruto-kun," she whispers, blushing madly. I just wave and head over to Neji, Lee, Shikamaru, and Kiba. A wave of sadness washes over me as I see them, but I immediately put on my huge smile.

"Hey guys," I wave energetically, passing them all invitations. Akamaru barks and takes the invitation for Kiba, who just sits there. Lee takes it like he couldn't care less. However…

"Dude, we're invited!" scream Neji and Shikamaru, hopping up to stand on their desks in excitement. I notice long pixie sticks in their hands, and I can't help but stare in amazement. The party is going to be interesting.

---

Even though he's a teacher, Kakashi doesn't seem to care that there's a party at his house, so he went to Iruka's. Thankfully I'm here, not there. The first people to arrive were Kankurou, Temari, Gaara, Chouji, Hinata, and Shino. The rest arrive in big groups.

Sasuke brought home some temporary blonde hair dye for Itachi, and made him lose the ponytail. He had him dress in a black tank top and some slightly baggy blue jeans. I couldn't stop laughing, but it was easy to stop after Itachi shoved his face in mine, our lips barely separate, and smirks.

The first two hours everyone just dances, drinks, talks, hang out and make out. Sasuke and I don't drink, so we just wander around, talking and dancing and drinking soda. Itachi caught me once when I wasn't paying attention and made me dance a few songs with him. By now Sasuke knows something happened between us, and snickers. I shoot a glare at him.

Soon after that, Sasuke climbs up on a chair and whistles loudly. "Can I have your attention please?" he yells after the music has been turned off. He opens his mouth to continue, then stops and looks at something in the corner of the room. "If you'd kindly put your…," he squints, "Uno game away, it's time for Spin the Bottle." He says this kind of sadly, as if he was forced to say it. Sure enough, he turns to step off the chair and glares playfully at Hinata.

I sulk; there's no one here I want to kiss. I notice Itachi staring at me again, and I try to put some space between us when sitting down in the huge circle. Albel, a guy in my Biology who almost killed me with his eyes when I gave him the invitation, sits down beside me. Fayt, the only guy who puts up with the cranky guy, sits beside him.

"This is a complete waste of time," I hear Albel mutter, and I turn slightly to glare at him.

"Then why did you come?" The only reply I get is a 'fool' though, and I mutter and turn away. To my luck, Itachi had gotten a seat directly across from me and stares at me as the game starts.

"Alright Kiba, you start. Whoever the bottle lands on, boy or girl, you go in that closet," he points, "for three minutes with." Kiba looks around and shrugs, grabbing the bottle and placing it on the ground, he spins it.

A few people hold their breath, a few look scared, while a few (mainly Hinata) look hopeful, staring at the bottle intently. It slows down, and ends up stopping on Sarah, a girl I talk to sometimes in my English class. She has blonde hair, gray eyes, and she was a bit on the short side.

She blushes and stands up, while Kiba chews on his lower lip as they walk into the closet. A few people go over to try to listen through the door, but they sit back down after Sasuke glares at them. He still has that glare, that hasn't changed.

Three minutes go by, and the pair exit after Akamaru, who was wagging his tail joyfully. They sit back down, next to each other this time, and their hands are clasped in each other's.

Lee sighs and reaches forward to spin the bottle. Sakura. She squeaks and blushes furiously, shaking her 'no' from side to side wildly. Lee only smiles kindly, tugs her up, and drags her to the closet.

Albel is next, since he wanted to be. A few scowls and insults decided that. He reaches for the bottle to spin it when… he simply turns it and makes it point to Fayt. Fayt gasps lightly and glares a little at Albel. Albel just smirks, runs a hand through Fayt's blue hair, licks his lips, and drags him to the closet.

The game continues the normal way, two people using Albel's method. Sasuke has had to kiss Gaara and Tenten. A few guys have had to kiss Tsunade-baachan (Yes, the _principal_ came to the party) and I've gotten away with kissing nobody.

It's now Itachi's turn, and I gulp. I know he's going to use Albel's method with the bottle. I plead with my eyes at Sasuke, and I can see he's torn from worry and amusement. When Itachi makes the bottle point at me, I yell out, "THAT'S CHEATING!"

Sasuke, a.k.a. Traitor, says, "You didn't say anything before," and raises an eyebrow. Amusement has won over worry, and I growl low in my throat and stomp off towards the closet, Itachi following me happily.

When he places a hand on my waist and leans down, I hiss, "Touch me and I'll make sure your ability to make children will be gone."

"Please?" he begs, and I shake my head, crossing my arms. He begs some more, and I make him settle for holding me. He holds me from behind and we stay like that in the dark closet until time is up, me thinking deadly thoughts about Sasuke.

Nothing interesting came from Truth or Dare, except some streaking down the street. The party ended early in the morning, and I expect there to be a _lot_ of absent, or otherwise sleeping, students during school.

Itachi comes out from the bathroom, drying his now-black hair with a towel. I kick him in the shin. "Damn! What?" he whines.

I smile innocently and we go to bed. He gets me back a few moments later by pecking me lightly on the lips, resulting in a screaming fest from me that ended quickly when Sasuke whacked me over the head with his pillow. I pout and we all fall asleep, me once again sandwiched.

--- (Sasuke POV) ---

I get up early to actually make breakfast before school; scrambled eggs, bacon, and some biscuits. I know when people imagine me, they don't think of 'good cook.' Shows how simple-minded some can be.

I'm surprised when Naruto doesn't wake up from his spot on the couch at the smell of food, but then again this isn't the ramen-crazed Naruto I miss. So I walk over to the couch, yank the blankets off the sleeping figure, wrap a hand around his ankle, and I give a good, hard yank. So now he's gotten to wake up on the floor.

"Usuratonkachi," I sniff, walking back to the kitchen to scoop food onto a plate. Naruto glares and walks to the bathroom to get dressed and clean up; probably in my clothes. I don't say anything about it, since I was the one who told him to stay the night.

He comes back in the kitchen wearing one of my black shirts and shorts, and without a word scoops up some eggs, bacon, and grabs a biscuit. As he's spreading strawberry jelly on the biscuit, he asks, "How'd you sleep?"

"I slept fine. Why wouldn't I?" I ask, meeting his eyes and giving him my death glare, daring him to mention yesterday's events.

"Just being polite. Guess you're not a morning person," he mutters. I just grunt and sit at the table, shoving the food down my throat as quickly as possible. "Do you ever have parties?" he asks.

I stop eating, my fork halfway to my mouth. I immediately put it down, realizing how stupid I look. "Hn," I smirk. "Why would I?"

Naruto shrugs. "The other Sasuke throws a party every year. It's always around this time; they're always fun. I was just curious…"

I get up and toss the leftover food into the trashcan, and place the plate and fork in the sink. I turn to face him. "I'm not sure you realized this, but I'm a different Sasuke. Same past, but very different outcomes, and very different personalities," I sneer, throwing my backpack over one shoulder and stalk out the door.

The day passes by slowly; the same thing, day after day. Naruto hanging out with Neji, Lee, Shikamaru, and Kiba. Girls hanging off my arms. The only difference is Sakura isn't one of them; she seems she nervous around me, almost regretful. She should be.

Orochimaru, my freaky biology teacher, has gotten the habit of leering at me lately. When I feel his gaze on me, I just look up and glower at him. Uchiha Sasuke takes shit from no one. It still freaks me out, though.

I had just finished making a sandwich when someone knocks on my door. One guess who that is. I open the door and Naruto walks in and smiles at me. "Hey, Sasuke. I had to stay late to practice Romeo and Juliet, I came by to get my clothes," he says.

He walks to the bathroom after I nod in response, finishing off the sandwich. Naruto has changed back into yesterday's clothes so he could leave mine here, and is about to leave. I don't really know why I ask what comes out of my mouth next. It seems almost necessary, but that doesn't make sense. Maybe I feel a little guilty about treating him like shit. Who knows.

"Want to stay the night?" I mutter, meeting his gaze head-on. Naruto just stares, confusion written all over his face. After a while, a slow smile stretches across his face and he nods.

"Sure. I'm going to run home and get some clothes." I just grunt and sit on the couch as Naruto runs out the door to his house. Ten minutes later, Naruto was in my house again and he's forcing me to watch some idiotic show about ninjas.

After five minutes of 'chakras' and 'jutsus' and feeling my IQ drop by the second, I snap. "Who the hell watches shows about _ninjas?_ Why do people watch television? It just interferes with more important things."

"You don't watch tv? At all?" Naruto asks, cocking an eyebrow. I shake my head slowly, giving him the 'You're an idiot' look. He then gives me the 'Oh well, too bad' look and we continue watching his ninja show for another thirty minutes. I'm happy they're finally over, but then Naruto pulls out season one of it, and I seriously think about just kicking him out.

After a few more episodes though, I grudgingly admit, only to myself of course, that it isn't that bad of a show. I glance at the clock and it's almost six, and Kakashi still isn't home. Since Naruto is here, that means Iruka is alone at his house. I think you know the rest.

I turn the tv off and drag Naruto to my room, grabbing his backpack on the way past it. Once we reach my room, I close the door and stuff the backpack in his arms. "We've had your fun. Now it's homework."

The real Naruto would've whined and moaned, but this one just shrugs and nods, agreeing. I open my math book when he puts a hand on it, blocking my view of the problems.

"Isn't that a good anime, though?" he asks, smiling innocently. I glare at him and move his hand, only to have it come back again. "I'll remove it once you admit you liked it. I'm not that stupid, Sasuke."

"It's not that bad for something on a television screen, now move your hand, dobe," I snarl, ready to shed blood. He gets the picture, chuckles, and opens his own math book after taking it out.

"I thought you two were parallel," I mutter. Naruto shrugs.

"There's gotta be a few likenesses, I guess. It is fun pissing you off though." He dodges my punch.

We work on our homework, every once in a while Naruto asks me to help me with something. I get up an hour later to heat up last night's dinner, since I don't feel like cooking.

We sit there, across from each other, eating out steak silently. I feel an uneasiness in my stomach, but I ignore it. "I'm going to bed," I mutter, heading to the bathroom to change and brush my teeth.

"Let me guess, I sleep on the couch?" Naruto asks, chuckling slightly. I give him a 'What do you think?' look and he waits outside the bathroom for me to finish.

"Night Sasuke-kun," he teases. I stop on my way to my room and contemplate just charging him and knocking him unconscious. I settle for glaring at him and slamming my door shut.

---

In my sleep, I feel someone staring at me. I force myself awake, blinking a few times, and look around my room trying to adjust to the dark. A figure stands right beside my bed, and I open my mouth to yell when a hand covers my mouth.

The figure leans forward, and blue eyes are right in front of my onyx ones. "Naruto, what the hell are you doing?" I whisper after yanking his hand off mine. I glance at the clock: twelve thirty. "Are you sleep walking?" I'll seriously kill him…

Naruto shakes his head and puts his index finger to his mouth, motioning for silence. "I'll tell you later. Let's just get out of here," he whispers. His voice is shaking slightly from fear.

He pulls me out of bed and drags me to the window. "Someone's in the house."

I growl low in my throat; he's so dense. "It's Kakashi, you idiot."

Naruto just shakes his head. "It's not. After I got up and ran into the hall, I peeked from behind the corner. He's taller than Kakashi." Fear and excitement spread throughout my body.

"He said he'd finish this later," I murmur, yanking my hand from Naruto's and heading over to my dresser. I open the bottom drawer, dig through my boxers, and pull out a gun. "I'm finishing this. Not him."

"Are you nuts?" Naruto hisses. "Remember how last time went?"

"Last time," I snarl quietly, "a certain someone had been stupid enough to get caught."

"Last time," Naruto mocks me, glaring, "a certain someone had been stupid enough to think a crazed fangirl had taken your cell phone hostage and left you a note to go to the alley so she could molest you."

"Like you thought anything different? No one expected it to be-"

"Fighting, little brother? How foolish," another voice, calm and emotionless, joins in, breaking up our little fight. We both spin around to face Itachi, dressed the same as last time; all in black. He's leaning against the doorway, arms crossed.

"Bastard," I hiss, raising the gun instantly and aiming at his heart. In the blink of an eye, Itachi ducks and lunges, pulling something out of his pocket. A sharp pain sears horizontally across my stomach, and that's followed with Itachi raising a leg and kicking me down to the floor.

I manage to keep a hold of my gun, though, and before he can stab me to death, I quickly aim at Itachi, trying to hit anywhere, and pull the trigger. He grunts a little and clasps his thigh, and takes out his own gun quickly from the other pocket, murder in his eyes.

Rolling on my stomach, I propel myself to the side and behind the bed, dragging Naruto along with me. Itachi scoffs a few feet away, and I quickly stand up and shoot again.

This time the bullet hits his left arm, and like a snake he's quickly in front of me once again and grabs my wrist, twisting it. I barely stop myself from screaming, but because of that I heard the bone in my wrist break. I probably would've heard it anyway.

Itachi grabs the gun just as it leaves my limp hand, but to both our surprise, Naruto jumps forward and on top Itachi. "Naruto, get the hell away! You'll die!" I yell, trying to ignore the pain now coursing through my left arm.

Naruto brings back a fist and punches Itachi in the jaw with all his might, and once again his stomach. Itachi has managed to get the knife and one gun back in his pocket, and tries to shoot Naruto but misses.

He manages to punch Naruto in the gut, then grabs his hair and yanks him off. Naruto aims a kick at his face but Itachi catches his foot, swings him around once and throws him away from him, sending him crashing into my dresser and lamp, shattering it and most likely cutting his back.

I get up and tackle him from behind, trying to keep my left arm away from any contact. I quickly grab my gun back, but Itachi snarls and head butts my forehead with the back of his head. I hiss in pain, and he whirls around and punches me in the face, sending me staggering away from him, and he takes the time to raise his gun.

I hear a gunshot, and all I can do is stand there, dizzy. I once again feel pain in my stomach, and I double over, letting out a low groan. He grabs my hair and yanks me up, then pushes me back against the wall and I slide down it, feeling my strength and will leave.

Itachi just stares at me for a moment, looking as if he was let down by my lack of fight. He turns to Naruto, who has fallen on the floor and is trying to get up, and aims his gun at him.

Memories flash through my head, begging me to do something. To stop what is about to happen at any cost. Naruto stuffing ramen down his throat, Naruto pouting then sticking his tongue out at me, Naruto and I bickering, Naruto and I playing in the sand when we were younger, Naruto's heart breaking in two as I turn away and toss our friendship away. Naruto.

"Naruto!" I yell, desperate. Itachi ignores me, the biggest mistake he ever made. Naruto's on his hands and knees, trying to catch his breath, and glaring up at Itachi challengingly. Pulling up strength once again, I clench the gun in my right hand, shaking slightly. I steady my breathing, and aim.

One last gunshot fills the air, and Itachi's eyes widen slightly before they become dull and he crumples to the floor. I pant heavily and drop the gun to the floor, staggering over to Naruto. I collapse to my knees when I reach him.

"I did it," I barely manage to get out. It felt as if a great burden was lifted, and a great burden _has_ lifted. Our eyes meet, and we smile. "You okay?" I ask him.

"I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" Naruto asks, mocking me. We chuckle, and I feel my eyesight getting a little blurry. "Sasuke?" His voice sounds far away, the only thing I can do is look up at him quizzically. Then my world goes completely black, the last thing I hear being, "Sasuke!"

---

**Whoo, what a chapter. XD No, Sasuke's not dead. I think this is my longest chapter yet, not sure though. It was really fun to write, I will say that. Two more chapters to go, maybe one. I might just roll them up into one..not sure. What would my reviewers like?**

**In case you're curious, after I finish One of a Kind, I'll be working on three new stories. All at once. x.x Another Naruto, this time in the same universe as the manga and anime, Star Ocean 3, and Final Fantasy VII. I'll probably have it where Sasuke comes back from Orochimaru, since I want to write in Sai. XD Anyway, they'll be Sasuke x Naruto, Albel x Fayt, and Cloud x Zack. Please leave a review, I'll appreciate it! **


	12. Reunion

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of the characters.**

**Alright, here's the last chapter. It's a bit different from the others. First it's Naruto's POV, then Sasuke's. Then Naruto's again, then the alternate Naruto's POV. I'll update this story when I have the pictures.**

**---**

**Chapter 11: Reunion**

--- (Naruto POV) ---

I shove whatever is tugging lightly on my hair, intent on staying asleep curled up in Sasuke's bed. Whatever it was doesn't come back, so I relax and burrow further down into the warm blankets, sighing contentedly.

Groaning, I turn my face as far as possible when I feel something hot and wet on my cheek, but it simply follows my movements and slowly trails across my cheek, heading for my mouth. I shut my eyes even tighter and move my shoulder across my cheek. I hear a small chuckle from right above me.

When the wet thing decides to shove itself in my mouth, my brain finally decides to become fully functional and the first thing that goes through my mind is: _Itachi_. I instantly roll over on my back from my side and shove the body off me, wiping my mouth. "Can you stop molesting me, you pervert?" I yell.

He just grins at me lazily and gets up from where he landed on the floor. "Otouto asked me to wake you up," he says, looking at me innocently as if that was the most obvious thing in the world.

I narrow my eyes at him dangerously; this Itachi is nice and all, but he's worse than Kakashi I fear. "I'm really sure Sasuke said, 'Itachi, go stick your tongue down Naruto's throat and wake him up, will you?' What time is it, anyway?" I huff, sitting up and stretching.

"Eight-thirty," he says, and it looks as if he's going to continue but I immediately jump up from the bed.

"What's wrong with you! We're late for school, what the hell!" I run out of the room, ignoring Itachi's calls for me to come back, and run straight into Sasuke, who is on his cell phone. "Are you blind!" I screech from my spot on the floor.

Sasuke winces and rubs the inside of his ear, and mutters a, "Yeah, see you in an hour," into his phone and hangs up. "We're not going to school today. We're going to the beach," Sasuke says simply, walking into the room. "So get ready."

I ignore him and follow him into the room, confused. "The beach? Why?"

From where he is, with his head buried in the closet, he says, "Because, you're here, and I'm pretty damn sure you won't be here this time next year. So I'm going to make sure you have fun before you go." Returning with a white tank top, he sees my face and grins. "I didn't tell them that though. Everyone who went to the party last night is going."

Itachi leans against the wall, staring at me in a kicked-puppy way. "Where are you going, Naruto-kun?" Sasuke and I exchange glances, and I nod to let him know he should know. If I don't, he'll find out the hard way when the other Naruto comes back.

Sasuke and I sit on the bed, leaving a space between us for Itachi to sit. When he doesn't move, I lean forward and drag him down beside me. Instantly his arms wrap around my waist, but I just roll my eyes.

Wanting to get this over with, I simply blurt out, "I'm not from this world." Itachi pulls away to look me in the eyes, then he snorts. Then completely cracks up laughing. I feel my left eye twitching. He stops the moment he notices how dead serious I am.

"Not a different world exactly. Just…a parallel one. I live in the same city, go to the same school with the same people, but the people themselves act completely different than what they do here. The Sasuke I know is broody has a stick up his ass constantly, and to put it simply wants to kill you." It's Itachi's eye that's twitching now at the last part.

"I'm not staying in this world forever. The other Naruto and I will switch back to our real lives soon." I can't help but have a sinking feeling in my stomach, but I ignore it. "So let's have fun and go to the beach."

I get up off the bed, not giving Itachi the chance to speak, and head to the bathroom. I stop in the doorway. "By the way Sasuke, don't let him wake me up. Ever." With that I go to get ready.

---

By the time all three of us arrive at the beach, everyone else has already arrived. We're the only people on the beach, mostly because of the fact that it's sort of hidden. As we lay our towels on the sand, a few girls boldly walk over and flirt with Itachi, who is now blonde again and depressed.

Coolers with drinks and tables stacked with food sit under the shade of some trees, along with a small crowd hovering there eating and talking. Ignoring the food for once (there's no ramen, anyway), I strip my shirt off and head to the water, feeling Itachi's eyes on my retreating back.

Sasuke catches up to me, his shirt gone as well, and glimpses back at his brother. "How did he wake you up anyway? I asked, but he just shrugged and got depressed. As you now see."

I frown, looking over my shoulder at Itachi as well. As usual, our eyes instantly meet and he gives me a half-hearted smile, ignoring the girls. I wonder if he even noticed them yet. Turning back to Sasuke, I roll my eyes. "First he pulls my hair, and when that doesn't work he licks my cheek then shoved his tongue down my throat."

Sasuke barely chokes down a laugh, and I playfully punch his shoulder, starting to laugh along with him. "Well, it got you up didn't it? As long as it worked." I stick my tongue out at him, and when we're waist-deep in it I splash him as payback.

This results in a war between us, with me ducking under the water to avoid some of the shots. A few minutes after we started our war, Sasuke stops and looks behind me, giving someone an apologetic face.

"What?" I ask, curious. Before I can turn around however, a hand wraps around my throat and yanks me backwards against his chest. I manage to turn my head slightly, and I recognize the blonde-tipped man I sat next to at the party last night.

He tightens his grip, with me trying to claw his hand off, and I hear someone splashing towards us yelling for Albel to stop. Probably that blue-haired guy. Albel just sighs and growls, "Splash me _one more time_, you'll regret it." With that he releases me and shoves me forward to join his friend.

I stand next to Sasuke, rubbing my throat and glaring at his back. "You have some violent friends," I hiss.

Sasuke shrugs, staring at my throat. "I never even saw him before. I don't know everyone that's he-" He's interrupted by a giant inflated ball, which lands a foot away from us and splashes us.

A guy with short black hair makes his way over and gives us this huge smile. "Sorry about that."

"It's fine," Sasuke and I chorus, getting some of the salt water out of our eyes. Neither of us move an inch, since the guy that came to get the ball just stands there, arm wrapped around the ball, and stares at me.

I look around, getting nervous under his gaze. "Do you want something?" I ask, glaring at the guy. He just blinks and smiles again, staring at my bare stomach. I hope he's not another molester like Itachi.

Not bothering to meet my gaze, he just stares at my stomach and says calmly, like he's talking about the weather, "You seem like the kind of guy that has a small penis."

Sasuke's mouth drops open, and I just stare at the guy for a while. Before I can recover and beat the weirdo to a pulp, Sakura and Ino yell over. "Sai! Hurry up!" With one last smile, acting as if he didn't say anything out of the ordinary, he's gone.

We stand there for a moment, watching Sai go back to the waiting people, dragging the ball along. I take in a deep breath to calm myself down so I won't follow him and make it look like he 'accidentally' drowned. "I'm going to get something to eat," I mutter. Sasuke just nods in agreement, silent, and follows me out of the ocean and to the food tables.

Itachi comes up behind me while I'm piling doritos onto my paper plate, and puts his hand on my shoulder. I don't say anything about it, since I gave up trying to get him to stop. "What was that about?" he asks, frowning in confusion.

"What was what about?"

"That guy with brown hair and blonde tips. And the black-haired one with the giant beach ball."

I feel myself getting angry against, just thinking about the latter. "The first guy has anger management and was about to strangle me for me and Sasuke splashing him. The second guy just has issues."

"What'd he say?" he prods.

I turn around and step closer to Itachi so no one else would hear. "He said I seem like a guy who has a small…" I pause and grind my teeth together, getting pissed off all over again. Itachi seems to have gotten it, though.

"Well, do you? Can you show me?" I reply by shoving him into one of the open coolers, and a few girls who saw it start to whine and cry about it. I roll my eyes and walk over to Sasuke and sit beside him, munching on my doritos.

Itachi joins us a few minutes later, and we stay like that for an hour. Friends stop by to talk, and we have a small discussion about Kiba and his new girlfriend, Sarah, who were currently playing frisbee with Akamaru.

I notice Itachi's eye starts to twitch, and I follow his gaze and soon enough my eye is twitching as well. Sasuke looks at us in confusion, then he notices Sai walking towards us and his eye starts to twitch. The dorito in my hand is demolished.

"Having fun, Naruto-kun?" he asks, shoving Itachi aside and sitting down next to me, practically on my lap. Why is it me he's talking to?

"I was," I growl, glaring at him and hoping he'll get what I meant and leave. He just smiles in his annoying way, unaware that his good health is in danger, since both me and Itachi are close to causing him serious injury.

"Do you need more chips, Naruto-kun?" he offers, glancing at my plate. I look at my plate as well, and I didn't notice that I crushed them all with my hand. Wordlessly, I shove the plate at him, planning to get away while he's gone.

Sai smiles _again_, and heads for the food table. As if reading my mind, Itachi and Sasuke grab my arms and drag me across the beach to a clump of trees, and we hide behind those. Itachi possessively wraps his arms around my waist, my back against his chest. Sasuke snorts.

After a few minutes, I take a peek behind the trees at the food tables to find Sai gone. I breathe out in relief. "He has problems. I don't know why he's talking to me f-"

"Naruto-kun." Slowly, as if in a horror movie, all three of us turn our heads to look behind us, hoping the smiling black-haired boy behind us holding a plate of doritos is a figment of our imagination.

We just stare at him, while Sai stares at me, oblivious to the other two. "Naruto-kun," he whispers, for reasons I don't know why. Without warning, he takes a huge step forward and his face is right in front of mine. "Let's go to the movies Friday."

I feel my eye twitching again. "Um…no. And how do you know my name?"

He just smiles again, his face still right in front of mine. I grab Itachi's wrists to keep him from hitting the weird guy, even though I really want to, too. "I hear your friends call your name. I'll pick you up at six." With that, and another smile, he walks off. With my doritos.

I let go of Itachi's wrists so I can tackle and kill Sai, only to be restrained by Sasuke. Watching Sai get further and further away, I turn to face Sasuke and Itachi. "You two are coming with me Friday."

---

It's six o'clock Friday evening, and all three of us sit on the couch, looking gloomy. Iruka isn't home once again, he never usually is. He doesn't seem to give a crap, unlike the other Iruka.

Someone knocks on the door, and we flinch and get up to answer it, already knowing who it is. I still don't know how he knows my address. I open the door, revealing Sai in a tight black t-shirt and pants, smiling.

"They're coming with us," I growl, making it clear that it's final. He doesn't say anything, just smiles, and looks over my outfit. Which is jeans and an orange hoodie. Itachi once again has blonde hair, and he seems to be getting sick of it.

Itachi and Sasuke get in the back of the car, but before I can slide into the passenger seat Sai grabs my arm and yanks me back up, leaning towards my ear. "You didn't have to wear such a baggy hoody, Naruto-kun. Even if you get an erection, no one will notice." Before I can yank his heart out and shove it down his throat, he smiles and shoves me inside the car.

I feel myself shaking with anger, and I'm not aware of Sasuke asking me what's wrong, I'm so pissed off right now. I'm surprised I didn't lunge at him the second Sai slid into the seat. He gives me another innocent smile before he starts the car.

---

We walk into my dark house, tired out from the awful evening. For me, anyway. Sai made three more cracks about my small penis, as if he'd seen it, and then tried to kiss me outside the theater. Itachi took care of that fairly quickly.

We lay on the couch watching tv for a few hours, my head in Itachi's lap and feet in Sasuke's. Even though he's really annoying and perverted, stroking his fingers through my hair was soothing.

Around midnight, they decide to wake me up from my half-awake half-asleep state to go home. "I'll be over tomorrow afternoon," Sasuke says, one hand on the doorknob. I just stare at him, a bad feeling running through my whole body.

He just gives me one last smile and starts to close the door, but the feeling that I'll never see them again wins over. "Wait!" I practically yell, throwing the door back open and Sasuke with it.

I grab Itachi's shirt and hug them both tightly, never wanting to let go. I want to see Sasuke again, but I've grown to love these two like brothers. I know Itachi doesn't love me like a brother, but oh well.

Finally letting go, I back away and force a smile on my face. "Night…" I whisper. I guess the bad feeling is contagious, because now they're staring at me as if they shouldn't go. I sigh and wave, and I thought Itachi was going to molest me again, but I guess he controlled his urges.

Itachi disappears out of the house, and Sasuke and I just stare at each other. I'd feel really stupid if I wake up tomorrow and I'm still here, but I know that won't be case. We both know it. "Bye," he says, before he shuts the door and is gone.

--- (Sasuke POV) ---

"You're awake!" is the first thing I hear, and a blonde boy smiling gently from above is the first thing I see. I groan and sit up, feeling a slight pain shoot through my stomach and left wrist.

"Your wrist is broken. I'm just glad you're alive," he breathes, his eyes huge. I shake my head, letting the memories of what happened come back. I look at Naruto, then around the hospital room.

"What day is it?" I ask, my voice slightly hoarse. I clear my throat, and lean back against the bed.

"Thursday afternoon…" Naruto answers, looking like he wants to hug me. I just glare at him; I know it's a mean thing to do after he's been worrying about me, but I'll be forced to kill again if he hugs me. Wait…kill _again_?

"Naruto…" I pause, taking a breath to steady myself. "Did I really…Itachi…?"

He nods, studying me carefully. "Yeah…how's it feel?" He blushes slightly. "I mean, do you feel like trash, or do you feel like your revenge is complete? You won't have a lust for killing now, will you?" He chuckles nervously.

I snort slightly. "Like revenge is complete. He deserved what I gave him, especially after what he did to both of us." Naruto just nods, silently agreeing. A doctor comes in, smiling politely.

"I'm Shizune," she introduces herself. "How do you feel?"

"My wrist hurts. And my stomach," I mumble. "When can I leave?" I glare at her, hoping for her to cower in fear under The Uchiha Death Glare.

She smiles and chuckles, at my impatience I guess. "Hopefully tomorrow. Your stomach will hurt for a while, that's usually the case when someone shoots you." She laughs again when I glare at her, and walks out of the room.

By a few hours, word had somehow gotten around that I was awake and now my room is filled with squealing, crying girls and other visitors. I pretend to be asleep, but even that doesn't stop them from talking to me until the nurses shove them out. The only two left now are Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi.

Sakura is crying, too, but surprisingly enough she wasn't one of the ones screaming and gabbing on and on to a 'sleeping' person. "Sasuke, you can stop acting like you're sleeping now," Kakashi says, his stupid Icha Icha Paradise book tucked under his arm.

The pink-haired girl chuckles softly and looks down at her feet. I groan and sit back up, looking at the three of them. Kakashi rolls his eyes, Naruto's asleep, and Sakura is now looking straight at me.

"Sasuke, I'm sorry for calling the police that one day… If I would've known that man was your brother, I wouldn't have. I guess I kind of understand your reasons for not telling anyone about what really happened, who killed your brothers. I was just…scared…I thought you were going to die." She's looking down again, a few tears rolling down her cheeks.

I clench my fist, wondering how she can be so selfish. "Sakura, did you even worry about Naruto?" I ask, barely keeping my voice neutral. But I'm staring at her, my eyes colder than usual.

She bites her lip, and shakes her head quietly, ashamed of herself. I let out a sigh. "Stop obsessing over me. It's pointless, and there's no way I'll be interested in you. Any of you. And it's disgusting how all of you are such bitches to Naruto, simply because 'he might take me away from you.'" At the shocked look on her face, I can tell she didn't know I overhear them talking. "I'm not deaf," I sneer at her, continuing to glare.

Sakura nods and stands up, letting out a shaky breath, trying not to start crying again. I ignore her and lay back down, my back to the three of them. "Sorry, Sasuke-kun," she whispers, and I hear her leave the room.

I hear Kakashi stand up. He hasn't said anything during that whole exchange, and I don't really care. "Sasuke, I'll be seeing you tomorrow at home."

"Hn," I grunt, and I stiffen up when his hand ruffles my hair playfully. He's lucky I'm in bad shape right now. After he's gone, I turn back to around to look at the sleeping Naruto. I frown slightly, wondering how the real dobe is doing.

---

I'm stretched out on the couch, my feet in Naruto's lap, but I'm too tired to do anything about it. He's taking advantage of my tired and sore state by making me watch that ninja anime again.

The main character and the really broody guy are annoying, though. It's obvious they like each other; they should just shut up, stop competing or whatever, and jump in bed already. But no, they're both idiots.

"What's wrong now? You're frowning," Naruto snickers, and I just glance at him quick enough to shoot icicles at him. He's not affected.

"I'm going to head home. Since I care so much about you-" damn, still not affected, "-I'm going to bring the homework you need over tomorrow. We can also practice for the play."

"Hn," is the only sign I give him that I heard him. He chuckles once again, rolling his eyes at me, and he's gone. I stare at the tv screen, my eyes drifting closed. For some reason, I can't wait until tomorrow.

--- (Original Naruto POV) ---

I groan and try to get away from the sunlight streaming through my window, but I remember Sasuke's going to come over. Sitting up, I yawn and stretch, remembering last night. God, that Sai guy is weird. He might be stalking me too, but he's just scary. And pisses me off, what's with him and talking about my penis?

I know Iruka's still sleeping, since I hear light snores coming from his room. I get dressed and boil some water for ramen, still trying to wake up. Glancing at the clock, it's noon already. Sasuke should be here soon.

When two hours come and go, along with three packets of ramen, I walk out of the house and over to Sasuke's to see if he's okay. He's probably still sleeping; he does that sometimes.

I stroll right in without knocking, and the first thing I see is Sasuke sitting on the couch, watching tv. "Everything okay?" I ask, walking up behind the couch to peer down at him. "Where's Itachi?" I look around, seeing no sign of his perverted brother.

Sasuke shifts over to his back and glares up at me, frowning. "You're late. And I killed him," he sneers, as if it's obvious.

I raise an eyebrow and chuckle lightly. "Did he put green hair dye in your shampoo bottle again?" Sasuke stands up and just looks at him, and scoffs.

"Shut up. Where's the homework?" he asks, sitting down on the arm of the chair now, looking at me expectantly.

"What homework? And why didn't you meet me at my house? That's what you said." I shrug, putting my forearms on the back of the couch.

Sasuke just mutters and rubs his temple with his hand, and I hear him mutter, "Usuratonkachi."

I don't think about why Sasuke is acting like my Sasuke, and I don't think when I practically shout, "Shut up, teme!" It just seems like the most natural thing to do. At the same moment, it seems, we both freeze, realizing what happened.

Sasuke turns to stare at me, not glare at me, but just stare incredulously, his eyes full of shock. "Naruto?" he whispers, and I only gawk back before I manage to nod. After that, we go to the pier to talk about what the hell happened. Sasuke told his story first, then I did.

"Itachi almost killed us?" I whisper in shock. Sasuke just nods, and I murmur, "I'm glad you got your revenge at least, baka. I'm sure Naruto's in for a shock when he goes over to Sasuke's," I laugh, thinking about his face.

"So in your little parallel world, Itachi is friendly, but perverted?" Sasuke asks, raising his eyebrow. I hope he doesn't get pissed at me for being friends with him, but the two Itachis are completely different.

"Yeah, he tried to molest me every chance he got. In the closet, when I'm sleeping, in the kitchen…" Sasuke snorts and I can't help but crack up. I will miss those guys, though. But it feels so_ right_ to be here.

"Why didn't you stay?" Sasuke frowns, and I look over at him, confused.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it sounds like you really like this other Sasuke and…Itachi," he narrows his eyes, glaring at the water. "Much nicer than I am to you. So why are you back?"

I stay silent for a few moments, looking away from him so he won't see the blush on my face. Like I can just up and tell him I never really stopped loving him after all these years. I stand up and shrug, forcing myself to laugh. "I don't know. I'm going to visit the others."

A strong hand clasped my arm before I had gotten to take two steps, and I turn around to see Sasuke glaring at me, his whole face demanding for an answer. "Why did you want to come back here to us?" he asks again, more quietly.

I don't even bother to force on a happy face this time, I just look at him. "You really don't want to hear the answer, Sasuke," I whisper, yanking my arm out of his grip. I start to walk away again when he yanks be back again, perhaps a little too hard. I lose my balance and trip over his foot, and instinctively groping for something to catch my fall, I grab Sasuke's arm.

We both emerge from the water, coughing and spitting, me feeling like the hugest dumb ass ever. "Sorry," I mutter, turning to climb my way out of the water. To my surprise I'm yanked down once again, but this time Sasuke just gave up on using words.

His lips capture mine, and he holds us above the surface by gripping onto the ground behind me. After my shock wears off, my eyes close and I tangle a hand in his hair, pulling him closer and kissing him back.

He nibbles my bottom lip, his free hand gliding its way down my torso, under my shirt. I gasp, and immediately his tongue slips between my lips, massaging my own tongue. I fight back a moan, but fail, and Sasuke presses himself even more against me.

His tongue slips out of my mouth and his own mouth moves down to my throat, nipping, sucking, and licking. This time I don't even bother to try not to moan, I just claw his back desperate for something, while his other hand works on my chest and nipples.

Sasuke gives my throat one last lick, before he just breathes against it, his hand now running over my stomach, chest, and back again. We stay like that for a moment, and then I decide to just tell him. "I love you," I murmur, my eyes closed. "I always have."

He just nods, still breathing hard. "I love you, too, dobe," he whispers in my collarbone, his voice husky. I chuckle, happy beyond belief, but then the moment is gone.

"Wow…" A voice murmurs, and we both look up on the pier to see a small crowd of people watching us, a few desperately trying to stop the blood flow from their noses. I blush. _The hell_?

Sakura, her face red as well, grins. "Sorry. I saw you two, and I went to go get some friends, and word got around." Now is the time where she yanks the hair out of my head and clobbers me to the brink of death.

"Congratulations," she says, and that's immediately followed by a few happy squeals from the Sasuke Fan Club. She offers her hand to us, and I grab it and lift myself up, bending down again to help Sasuke. He still hasn't said anything.

I don't let go of his hand, though, and he doesn't seem to mind. He tightens his grip. "Thanks Sakura-chan," I say, looking away from her and everyone else.

"I'm sorry Naruto-kun," she says, and I look at her to see her eyes filling up with tears. _She really means it…_ I grin at her, ready to start things fresh with everyone I hadn't gotten along with in the past.

"Everything's fine now."

--- (Parallel Naruto POV) ---

I knock on Sasuke's door, his homework and script in hand, but there's no reply. Waiting a few more minutes, I decide to just walk in. He might get pissed at me, but if he doesn't want me waltzing in he should answer the door then when he knows I'm coming over.

"Sasuke?" I call out, and I get nothing in reply. I guess he's still sleeping, not that I blame him. He did just get out of the hospital.

I walk down the hall and to his door, swinging it open. Sure enough, there's a lump on the bed and I softly snort. Walking up to the bed, I hit Sasuke lightly over the head with the script. "Wake up, we gotta practice. You can heal or mope or whatever later."

Sasuke turns around to face me, and I swear my heart stopped beating. At the least I know I stopped breathing, because I passed out.

---

"Naruto-kun, are you okay?"

"Naruto?"

The two voices keep repeating my name over and over, and I groan and sit up. I swear I just saw Itachi in Sasuke's bed, but he's dead. I'm hallucinating, just great. I look up to see…Itachi.

"HOLY SHIT HE'S GOING TO FUCKING KILL US!" Not even stopping to think why Sasuke was sitting on the floor so calmly in his boxers, his hair wet, I grab him and run out the door.

I'm immediately tackled from behind, and I expect a knife in my heart or bullet through my head any second. Instead Itachi just seems content to lie on top of me. Sasuke crawls out from under me and glares.

"The hell is wrong with you?" We stare at each other, and I think over things. Itachi's not dead, he's here. Hugging me. Sasuke isn't glaring daggers at me, he seems concerned about my mental state.

I push his brother off me and launch myself at Sasuke, unable to stay calm this one time. "Sasuke, it's me, Naruto!" I can feel Sasuke stiffen in surprise, and I hear Itachi take a sharp intake of breath behind me.

It takes a while for him to register what exactly happened, but he's hugging me back and now we're sitting on his bed, talking about what happened to each of us. Itachi seems sad that his parallel him is such a cold-hearted ass, and that "he'd never hurt Naruto-kun or Otouto."

"So…Naruto-kun isn't coming back?" Itachi asks, gazing at the wall sadly. We shake our heads, and he wordlessly gets up and leaves the room, closing the door behind him.

"I still don't know why how he became so obsessed with Naruto," Sasuke mumbles, curled up in my lap. "I noticed him staring at him a lot, and then after a while he just molested him."

I chuckle nervously, and Sasuke seems to notice. "Don't worry; you may be Naruto, but not Itachi's Naruto. Much like I'm Sasuke, but not Naruto's Sasuke. Does any of that make sense?" I ask, and we both burst out in laughter.

"I feel…bad for him, really," I whisper, talking about Itachi. Sasuke just nods his head.

"I hope…Naruto fixes things with Sasuke. Unlike us, they didn't keep their promise to stay friends forever. But both of them never stopped loving each other."

"I'm sure it will…what about us?" I whisper, glancing at Sasuke and then sighing, relaxed. He sits up, and I look at him, confused. He just gives me a small smile, leans towards me, and kisses me gently on the lips.

---

**Alright, that's the end. This is a longer chapter than the others. XD By a few thousand words lol. Anyway, I feel bad for poor Itachi. Makes me want to a NaruIta one-shot. Please leave a review, and I'll begin working on my next Naruto story, called Wants and Needs, really really soon. Here's some info: It's not AU, and I quite haven't decided on the pairing. Either it'll be Naru x Saru, or Naru x Sai. Please let me know what you guys want, since I can't decide lol. Hope you enjoyed this!**


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